


Oh, Love Soldier

by Nerdy_Strega



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Mind Control Aftermath & Recovery, Post-Recovery Bucky Barnes, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Bucky Barnes, Teacher Reader, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Trauma, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes, bucky being cute with kids
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-18 22:21:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 43,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29497209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nerdy_Strega/pseuds/Nerdy_Strega
Summary: Bucky Barnes has paid his dues. After his recovery in Wakanda, he returns to the U.S. as not only an ally, but an Avenger. While completing missions and adjusting to his new family, he often thinks to himself, nothing could be better than this.That is, until he meets you. The result of horrifying HYDRA experimentation, with a tattered past and dangerous powers. He’s ready for anything, knowing that you were once Hydra’s prized weapon, until he comes to find out that you’re but a kindly kindergarten teacher, with a charming, giggly air and nothing but love for your students.The Winter Soldier has seen horrors that the world  couldn’t imagine the likes of. But when you’re placed in his care, Bucky finds within you a challenge that he can’t seem to shake.Maybe Bucky can learn a few lessons of his own.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Reader, James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader
Comments: 56
Kudos: 158





	1. Eyes

**Author's Note:**

> First chapter! I’d appreciate any feedback you could give me. While this isn’t my first fic, it’s my first fic on AO3 so please be nice! This is the first chapter so it’s mostly exposition but I’m so excited yahoooo

**17 years ago...**

Pain.

That’s all the girl could feel.

Searing, horrifying, rushing through her veins and pounding at her arms. Her sobs broke through the room as she thrashed against her restraints. Poked and prodded at with needles, she let out bloodcurdling shrieks that her torturers didn’t even flinch at. Not that any child likes needles, but only eight years old, she pleaded for it to stop.

The steel walls around her confused her. In her mind, steel walls were meant for somebody who was bad. That’s what she saw on TV, the early morning cartoons she would watch while spooning cereal into her mouth displaying sinister bad guys. Those were the guys who belonged inside steel walls. Why was she here? What did she do wrong? Was she bad? What did she do to deserve this?

She locked her eyes onto the IV that had been inserted into her arm. This wasn’t like when her mom took her to the doctors office. There, when she got shots, she would get a lollipop and a sickly cute Hello Kitty bandaid. However if the scary men in lab coats looming over her were correct, she would be lucky just to live.

She glowered at the needle in the mean looking doctor’s hand. He gave her a sickening smile, showing his rotting and yellowing teeth. He leered over her and she could smell his rotten breath as she choked on her sobs.

“Say goodnight to your father, yes?”

Her eyes drifted from him to the man she was supposed to love most in the world. The man who was supposed to be her introduction to love, who was supposed to give her the world. The man that had brought her into this lab, the man that stared at her blankly, nothing warm on his face, just the vague hint of curiosity as the needle was aimed at the child’s heart.

She let out another gut-wrenching sob, trying to shake her head but was impaired by the amount of restraints on her little body.

“Daddy...” she cried meekly, cut off by a yelp as the needle was shoved into her heart.

The needle was thick, and with no anesthesia, it made her screech in pain as an eerie blue liquid was pumped into her chest. Her tiny body burned, from her heart down to her arms to the tips of her fingers and toes. Her veins darkened, the serum spreading throughout her body. She went dizzy with pain, straining ragged breaths. She yelped apologies, weeping as she stared at her father. She pleaded for help as he turned his back, and left.

The last thing she saw before her eyes went hazy was her father’s satisfied smirk as he wheeled in some sort of contraption.

At its center was what caught her eye.

A strange blue cube, its beautiful glow casting shadows on the equipment of the lab.

The girl stared at the artifact, suddenly fascinated. Before all went black, she could have sworn she saw the shadows pull back, as the strange blue glow licked closer to her body.

——

**PRESENT DAY**

“Hey, tin man. Quit spacing out, you’re making me nervous.”

Bucky’s eyes snapped up to Sam, a scowl already present on his lips as he was interrupted from his train of thought.

Sam simply chuckled in return, nudging Bucky with the end of his newspaper. They sat unmoving in the compound kitchen, propped up on stools at the granite island. Sam took a long sip of his orange juice, an eyebrow cocked in curiosity. “That was an invitation, Barnes. What’s rockin’ around in that big ol’ cyborg head of yours?”

Bucky exhaled through his nose as he contemplated what to say. There wasn’t much to say at all. He knew Sam was just being considerate. As much as Bucky tried to ignore it, masked by his goofy quips and jabs, Sam was a deeply loving and caring friend. It was Sam who often offered Bucky counseling and advice, helping him work through his trauma post-HYDRA. Healing is just what Sam did. He didn’t make it feel patronizing or infantilizing, he had genuinely wanted his friend to be okay.

These things Bucky knew. But he still just wanted to be a dick about it. 

It was a tossup, too. Because Bucky didn’t even know what was going through his head. A swirling cacophony of thoughts caught the cogs in his logical and reasoning brain, like chewed up gum in a factory machine. He felt control slipping.   
  
And if there’s one thing Bucky didn’t do, it was lose control. 

So he spoke. Honestly and deliberately, clear and concise. He spoke in his edgy baritone voice after choosing his words carefully as not to worry Sam. “I had a weird dream last night.” 

Sam, once again, cocked an inquisitive brow. He didn’t want to press, if there’s one thing he knew about Bucky, about most trauma survivors, is that if he pressed too hard, he shut down. Gentle but steady, calm but curious. “Dreams are manifestations of our unconscious minds. The anxious dream more often because the stress weighs on their mind. Thoughts in your head givin’ you mixed up movies?” 

Bucky wasn’t anxious, that he knew. A little on edge these past few days, yeah. But much more that than anxious. Peaceful nights were ones in which Bucky didn’t dream at all. However nights were seldom peaceful, and regardless of his rehab in Wakanda, he was often plagued by 70 years of sins at the hands of HYDRA. 

Bucky parted his lips, mulling over his words once more. He tilted his head forward, chestnut brown locks of hair tipping into his line of sight. He breathed in to speak, interrupted by a sudden voice. 

“Hello, Sergeant Barnes. Commander Wilson.”

Bucky jumped, at the ready as he stood ready to fight. He should have heard the intruder come in, his mind racing a mile a minute as he jumped into a hostile stance. He eased however, seeing how it was just Vision. Sam stood in front of Bucky, one hand jutted out protectively in front of his close friend.

“Good lord, Vision. Please. We keep telling you to knock,” Sam scolded. As Vision murmured apologies, Bucky stared at Sam’s arm, lost in thought. The rolled up sleeve of his Henley drew above his bandaged elbow, a few scrapes sustained from a bad fall during a mission last week. Bucky pouted. Sam wasn’t protecting him. He was barring him from fighting, because he still expected him to lash out. 

Bucky sighed through his nose, crossing his mis-matched arms over the fabric of his thin grey T-shirt. He peered through his long eyelashes up at the Vision, his slate grey-blue eyes tracing the apologetic synthezoid. 

“Do forgive me, Sergeant Barnes. However, Captain Rogers is requesting your presence. We have a mission it seems, the captain must debrief us.”

Sam tilted his head curiously. “Debrief? Well, say goodbye to lazy Sunday,” he murmured with a resigned sigh. 

Bucky narrowed his eyes in thought. “What’s the mission? You have any idea, Vision?” 

Vision hummed gently, turning his head toward the door. “I do not, unfortunately. All I know is that it has to do with... Hydra.” 

Bucky picked up on the pause between words. It made him sick to his stomach. Not the fact that HYDRA was the issue, but the fact that Hydra-related missions meant everyone would be walking on eggshells around him. It pissed Bucky off more than it should have. 

The soldier let out a breath, running his hands through his slightly greasy waves. He tied them into a knot in the back of his head, grumbling at the small stubborn bits of hair that fell out and gathered in his face. “We’ll be right there. And I told you, Vision. It’s Bucky.”

Vision paused, but nodded indifferently as he phased back through the wall. 

Sam gave a hearty chuckle. “Never learns, does he?” Bucky returned the short laugh before following Sam to the conference room. “So, what do you think all this is about?”

Bucky hummed in thought. “Can’t be good. I doubt it’s a combat-heavy mission, otherwise there would have been more notice. Probably recon, hopefully something easy.”

“Always shying away from a fight, huh Buck?” Sam chortled, holding the door open for his cyborg friend. Bucky playfully rolled his eyes as Sam sidled into one of the swivel chairs framing the large glass table. 

“You’re just too eager.” 

“Can’t disagree with you there.” 

Before Bucky could sit, he had to do the usual rounds. Quickly, as he usually timed himself, never lasting more than ten seconds. He averaged at around five. His eyes flickered hurriedly about the conference room, mapping out the layout. Exits, closets, blind spots, windows, distances from each point of view, everything that could give him a sense of the space. It was the only way he could find a semblance of relaxation. A way to keep control. So he mapped them, quick and easy. 

_Two exits, one closet, furthermost from the projector screen. Perpendicular to the screen was the table, glass and large, arranged to seat all of the avengers. Swivel chairs sat at each point around the table. Distance from each seat to the door, closest is approximately five meters, furthest is eighteen. Windows, five. Large, floor to ceiling, no vantage points._ Bucky hurriedly thought, before relaxing his tense shoulders. He slid in next to Sam, opting for the corner furthest from the screen. Plain view of everyone, best vantage point. Plus, he’d never sit with his back toward a window. 

One by one, the Avengers settled in. Already waiting there for them was Wanda, smiling kindly in greeting at the two. Next to her sat Vision, clearly already restless. Bucky’s eyes flickered up as the rest of the Avengers followed in the order you’d expect. 

Steve, with his head held high, dawning a plain white T-shirt layered with a signature brown leather jacket. He commanded attention when he walked into rooms, being America’s protector, it made sense. He stood next to the screen, giving Bucky his friendly nod before watching the door patiently. 

Next was Natasha and Clint, settling down on Bucky’s other side while discussing Clint’s most recent home project: weaning his kids off of technology in turn for more outside time. It made Bucky snort. He wanted to chime in, tell them back in his day when he was their age, he’d steal pies off of windowsills or jog to the general store for penny candy, but he knew they’d just call him an old man.

Following them was Scott, somehow endearingly crunching on a hard shell taco as he slid into the seat next to Vision, licking his fingers as he greeted everyone cheerfully. That made Bucky quirk a brow. Scott didn’t exactly live in the compound. He’d stay the night in his room at times, on mission nights when he got Hope to look after Cassie, but he rarely commuted unless he was called. Whatever this was, they needed all hands on deck.

After him was Rhodes and Tony, bickering back and forth about something Bucky didn’t understand, but judging by the look on Steve’s face, it was dumb anyway. Banner slinked behind them, fiddling with his hands and nodding politely at everyone before sliding into the seat next to Natasha. 

“You’re late, Tony,” Steve scolded, his soft blue eyes narrowing at the genius billionaire. Tony clapped Steve on the shoulder in response, offering a shit-eating grin. 

“Sorry grandpa, we’re not all up at the crack of dawn like you.” 

Steve huffed through his nose, making Bucky chuckle at his best friend’s antics. His smile fell, however, at the sight of one last person who filtered into the room. The person he was least expecting: Fury. 

The entire room hung in shock at his presence. Fury rarely joined briefings, especially after the fall of SHIELD. He became elusive, making points to only be seen when it was completely necessary. Yet here he was, his eyepatch settled on his resting bitch face, calm and stern as always. 

Tony spoke first, as he usually did. “Director Fury, and here I thought you were a legend somebody invented. To what do we owe the honor?” He quipped, quick-witted and less-than subtle, like always. 

Fury relaxed his shoulder, turning up a brow at Stark with stern indifference. “Thank you for the introduction, Stark. I called Captain Rogers here because there’s an active case I need you all on.”

Bucky scratched his stubble, his eyes peering through his shaggy brown hair as he tried to anticipate what Fury was going to say next. What on earth could need this many Avengers on deck?

Nat spoke for all of them. “Something that needs all of us? Is it a stealth or combat mission?” 

Fury chuckled, his signature trench coat billowing behind him as he began taking small steps toward the side of the screen. “Easy now, Romanoff. All in due time. To answer your question, however, it could end up being both.” 

The room stirred in curiosity before Fury spoke again, leaning over the spine of the chair closest him. 

“When SHIELD went under, thousands of Hydra files were released to the public. People looking for answers dug through them, little of it understandable to the average joe. But... something blipped on our radar.” 

Steve slid his hand across the screen, pictures popping up of scanned files and pictures, weary with age but still decipherable. Bucky’s eyes flickered across the pictures, his eyes widening as they caught the picture of a little girl. Scared-looking, couldn’t be any older than eight or nine. She was tiny, her growth probably stunted from lack of nutrition. Something that resembled a shock collar constricted around her throat, her arms bound as she stared blankly at the camera. A child’s eyes should be filled with delight. Joy. Amusement. But hers were... so void of anything at all. And yet, Bucky noticed, they were glowing. An odd sapphire blue was glowing from the girl’s eyes. His mind sparked with familiarity as Fury continued speaking. 

“Seventeen years ago, this girl blipped on our radar. We had no idea who she was, where she was from, or what she was doing. Of course, back then, we had no idea that Hydra was still in operation.” Fury took a small pause, tapping the back of the chair. “These sick sons of bitches have done a lot. So many experiments on harmless people. But this one made us sick to our stomachs when we got access to the files.”

Steve took over for Fury, his eyes grazing over the screen. “I’ve read the file at length. Hydra’s experiments didn't stop at Bucky or their elite death squads. They were experimenting with creating super soldiers younger and younger, and that’s when they came upon... her.” Steve motioned to the sad-looking girl, sighing softly. “The daughter of one of Hydra’s best scientists, only eight years old when she was taken from her mother by her father to a remote facility and experimented on. She was supposed to pass away from the serum, but...” 

Fury cut in again, sliding over a picture that everyone was quite familiar with. The odd blue space rock that was giving SHIELD a headache since they found it was displayed prominently on screen. The Tesseract. 

“Hydra gained access to the Tesseract back then, when we had assumed they were SHIELD agents attempting to further their understanding of it. Due to unspecified experimentation between this girl and the Tesseract, she developed dangerous and exploitable powers. They called her-“ 

“The clairvoyant.” 

Bucky’s voice cut through the group, heads whirling to look at him in shock. Tony, having been oddly silent, quirked a brow at the winter soldier. 

“Manchurian candidate, you know this kid?” 

Bucky glanced around the room, meeting curious eyes. He sighed, tilting his head before he began to speak, once again, of the horrors and atrocities of Hydra. 

“Not personally. I’ve heard stories. I was kept in Siberia, she was kept in Germany. She wasn’t supposed to be there in the first place.”

Banner worriedly snapped up to meet Bucky’s gaze. “This kid _lived?_ Why’d she end up there anyways?” 

Bucky glanced down at his vibranium arm before continuing. “Her father is one of Hydra’s best scientists. Or... was. I don’t think he’s been heard from in years. Most Hydra operatives went under after SHIELD fell. Him I knew personally, the poking and prodding type. He wanted more soldiers, but after several failed attempts with other children, he thought that his daughter could be... his magnum opus, I guess.” 

Banner murmured to himself, tapping his chin in thought. “I mean... it makes sense. The super soldier serum literally rips people apart from the inside, more so kids because their bodies are less developed. The space stone could have served as a stabilizing agent, whether they anticipated powers or not. I mean- Wanda is the result of infinity stone experimentation.”

Clint sneered, the simple thought of hurting kids rippling through him. He hated cases with kids, it always made him think of his own. “So why do they call her the clairvoyant?” 

Fury huffed, rolling his one good eye. “If I _may,_ I was about to explain that to you.” The room chuckled at Fury’s playful pout as he returned his attention to the screen. 

“As I was saying, she’s incredibly powerful. Due to the Tesseract’s effect on her, it gave her crazy abilities. She can teleport at will, lift things with her mind, transport objects wherever she wants with the flick of the wrist. She can also see anywhere in the universe in real time with those eyes of hers, thus they gave her the name: the Clairvoyant.” 

Nat shook her head in disbelief. “Reconnaissance without even having to move a muscle. Hydra had a weapon of mass destruction at their beck and call, in the form of a child. That’s a new kind of sick.” 

Fury clicked his tongue. “That’s what we thought too. Until two years after she was initially taken, she suddenly... popped into SHIELD headquarters.” 

Wanda’s brows furrowed curiously. “She escaped?” 

Fury nodded. “She held the Tesseract in her hands, plopped it on the nearest desk as my colleagues and I tried to apprehend her. And as quickly as she was there... she vanished.” 

Scott hummed in thought. “What kinda kid escapes from kiddie jail and goes straight to give back a lost artifact? How would she have known?”

”Finally, Lang says something smart!” Tony jabbed, making Scott huff in a resigned pout. 

Sam hummed in thought. “I’m thinkin’ the same thing as tic-tac. Plus, you said she was eight at the time. That would make her... twenty-five, now. Why bring it up?”

”Because she blipped for us again,” Steve responded resolutely, the screen shifting to display... you.

The team murmured as they saw the image of the opposite of that starved, scared, blank-eyed child. It was unmistakably the same girl, but when they saw your headshot, an ID photo in your glory, it displayed the kind smile of a caring and loving person. It was the kind of smile that reached your eyes, making whoever looked at your photo sit back at ease, a bit of peace flowing through them at the sight of that smile. 

Bucky’s eyes lingered on that smile. He had to admit, you were gorgeous. There were certainly worse things to look at, and it was extremely difficult to believe that somebody who went through the horrors of Hydra could come out as seemingly flawless as you did. Bucky caught himself, reminding himself that looks often lie, but still his eyes lingered on that entrancing look in your eye. His eyes fluttered down to a bit of text below your photo, and he tilted his head. 

_‘New York Department of Education : School District Employee.’_

Tony’s eyes grazed over the files on screen before letting out a scoff. “Wait. Hold up a sec, Hydra’s arguably most potentially destructive weapon in history is playing Miss Frizzle at a New York elementary school?”

Steve tapped on the file, nodding gingerly. “I was as surprised as you are. She took a long time to find, but we put two and two together. She changed her last name to her mother’s maiden name shortly after she returned to her care, and they moved states away from their previous residence. The last thing we expected was for her to become an eager kindergarten teacher.” 

“Alright capsicle, I get it. But what’s this chick got to do with us?” Tony retorted. 

Fury finally sat, looking around at each of the members of the team. “We were able to find this woman. Meaning that Hydra was able to as well.” The words hung thick in the air with the pause Fury gave before continuing. “We have received intel that a Hydra operative may have infiltrated the school. Whoever that may be, it’s clear that they want their weapon back.” 

Bucky shook his head to himself slowly, staring at your picture once more. He had no idea how anyone could call something as sweet-looking as you a weapon. 

Sam nudged Bucky, a toothy grin on his lips. “You got a crush, lover boy?” 

Bucky rolled his eyes at Sam, chuckling at the jab. “I hate you.” 

Fury stood again, regaining the attention of the Avengers. “Here’s the mission. Effective immediately, the Avengers will be actively working Operation: Sight. Rogers?”

Steve took the stage, smiling proudly. “I came up with the name, of course. However, Operation: Sight contains two major components.”

Steve raised a finger, his eyes skimming the conference room. “Firstly, we need to identify if this woman poses a threat to anyone. Gathering from the little reconnaissance we have, she is an ordinary kindergarten teacher, however it won’t be too much to investigate into her state of mind, especially if she is to potentially assist the Avengers.” 

The team murmured at the prospect. No clue who this girl was, and there was already talk of her being an Avenger? No way. Steve waited for the group to simmer down again before he spoke. 

“Secondly, we need to identify the Hydra operative before any civilians, or the girl, are harmed.” 

Vision, who had been awfully silent, spoke out, his delightful accent calling attention to the room. “Forgive me, Captain Rogers. However, is it unwise for all of us to contribute to this project? We wouldn’t want to call attention to ourselves or the teacher, we may be putting her in danger if the Hydra operative is planning on taking her.” 

Steve smiled proudly, placing his hands on his hips. “That is an excellent question, Vision! That’s exactly the thing. Fury and I, after much deliberation, have chosen one person in specific to spearhead this operation.”

”And who could that be, cap?” Sam murmured charmingly, crossing his arms across his chest.

Steve grinned, looking back at Fury. “We agreed that our very own Bucky Barnes is the best candidate.”

Heads whirled over to Bucky, who was caught of guard by the sudden news. He rested his hands on the table, leaning forward confusedly. “ _What_?”

Fury laced his hands behind his back. “Barnes, you have the most exposure to Hydra operatives and experimentation. If anyone should be able to offer the teacher and the kids protection while sniffing out a Hydra rat, it’s you.” 

Bucky grimaced, turning away. “I... dunno. Kids don’t exactly like me. Wouldn’t it be better if someone like Sam or Clint took it?” Steve clicked his tongue in disapproval as Bucky tried to shy away.

”C’mon, Buck. Nobody knows these Hydra scum like you do. You have the best observation skills, you think quick on your feet, and you’re the best in the position to be able to connect and get a read on the Clairvoyant. You even have previous exposure to the case. It makes sense.”

Bucky’s eyes drifted over once again to your picture. Your kind eyes, your soft features, the homely cable-knit sweater that you dawned in your ID photo, he took it all in. You were made a weapon, now it was his job to figure out if you still were one. If not, then it was his job to protect you. He wasn’t sure which prospect he was more afraid of. 

So many questions raced through his head. Why hadn’t you escaped earlier? What had you been doing since then? What were you doing as a kindergarten teacher? None of it made sense to him, but he sat up straight, exhaling through his nose. He crossed his arms, the cool vibranium folded over his opposite flesh arm. He finally shifted his eyes away from your photo before locking eyes with his best friend and captain.

“Alright then. When do we start?”


	2. Oh, Hi Hero

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to thank everyone so much for your your kind words on my first chapter! Your feedback means a lot to me, so do your kind words and I just can’t wait to take this journey with you!

“ _Fuck_!” 

“Easy, now.”

You grimaced, yanking up your sleeve as you swore. Your mug, now significantly more empty as it had been before, was placed on the teacher’s lounge counter as you hurriedly skittered over to the sink, soothing the hot coffee burn on your arm with freezing water. 

You let out a soft ‘harrumph’ before whirling around, dabbing your reddened flesh with a paper towel and leaning against the sickly mustard yellow of the teacher’s lounge walls. 

“Don’t ‘easy, now’ me, Danny. You know just last year there was 98 caffeine-related deaths in the US?” You jabbed, earning a hearty chuckle from your coworker as he handed you another paper towel to dab your sleeve clean. 

“I’m pretty sure that exclusively relates to ingesting it. Don’t worry though, if clumsiness was a virtue, you’d be anointed a saint.”

Daniel Brekker was your coworker, spearhead of Mr. Brekker’s second-grade class. He worked on the first floor alongside you, but more than that, he was absolutely your work bestie. When you had met, you immediately bonded over a shared witty sense of humor, quickly building up a warm rapport. He shared your love of children, and would often bask in the genuine kindness in your eyes when you eagerly taught your kindergarten class. It came with jealous glares from other female teachers however, as Danny Brekker was almost inhumanly handsome. Pale skin with olive undertones and thick black hair slicked back that tickled the nape of his neck, he was the apple of most of the female educator’s eyes. 

What they couldn’t believe is that you could care less. Danny was such an awesome friend, but you never looked at him the way they did. It’s not like you could. He was goofy and chaotic, which made him the absolute best work friend. 

“Oh! That reminds me, I have to tell you-“ You leaned in, your grin spreading across your mischievous features. “I have a surprise for my kids today!” 

Danny chortled, sipping his corner store coffee before raising a perfectly plucked brow. “A surprise? Gee, that oughta perk up a Monday.” 

You fiddled with the hem of your overall dress, rolling your eyes at Danny’s dry jab. “Poo on you! I’m excited! You’ll never guess what it is. Go ahead, guess!”

Danny sighed, leaning back against the low oak table as he crossed his arm over his chest, careful not to spill a drop of his coffee over his baby blue button-down as you so clumsily had just minutes before. “You know that I hate guessing games, just tell me before I lose my patience.” 

You cheerfully giggled, your round silver glasses slipping down your nose in your shaking with excitement. “Three avengers are visiting my class today!” 

Danny’s brows shot up, clearly taken aback. “Really? Three of them? That must have taken some serious string-pulling.”

“That’s the thing!” You shot out excitedly. “I didn’t! I didn’t know at all until last night, I get a call from Jodeci that Captain America wanted to give my class a surprise visit!” 

Danny hummed, pleased with the news. “Good for you! She tell you why?”

You shifted from foot to foot and shook your head. “I was just as shocked as you. She just said that the good captain was dropping by a couple kindergarten classes and wanted to surprise mine.” 

“You think it was picked at random? Maybe it’s a reward thing, you do tend to manage your kids well. I know a lot of teachers in this joint are still trying to figure out how you control them so well.”

You chortled. “Danny. Control has nothing to do with it.” You smiled as you lifted your faded rainbow bag off of the teacher’s lounge table. “These are students, yes, but before that, they are children. And before _that_ , they are people. They have access to autonomy and they should be treated as such. They should enjoy their childhoods and have access to a learning experience that’s fun and kind to them. Not a lot of children have access to that.” You smiled softly at a keychain that dangled from your bag, a gift from one of your students. It was made during crafts, resembling a daisy, which the bright-eyed girl had remembered that it was your favorite flower. It made you smile each time you looked at it.

A reminder. Of all of the things that can go right in a childhood that isn’t taken away.

Danny rolled his eyes before he flicked his empty coffee cup into the trash. “Ugh, alright Mother Theresa. You sound like air supply.” 

Classic Danny. You narrowed your eyes playfully before sticking out your tongue. “Oh come on, Dan! You’re telling me you don’t try to give your second-graders the best possible second-grade experience ever?”

Danny shrugged indifferently and held the door for you as you shuffled down the early school morning corridors. “I mean- I try to engage them. Of course I care for them. But it’s not exactly like they’ll remember second grade. I mean- do you remember anything from when you were their age?” 

Your steps stuttered. You played it off as a clumsy stumble before offering a nervous laugh. Second grade was the last normal year of your life, and you had to admit, a lot of it had blurred. Repression in trauma survivors wasn’t uncommon, and while years of therapy had helped you lift the fog a bit, you had to admit that there was little that you did remember. 

“Guess not,” you breathed out with a chuckle.

Danny walked you to your classroom, clapping you on the shoulder. He smiled kindly at you, the skin crinkling around his dark brown eyes charmingly. “Well, good luck with your visit. Come by my room at lunch, we can chit-chat.” 

You nodded curtly, swinging open the door to your classroom. You smiled at the familiar sight of the room made home to your kids. Posters tittered the walls and closets, displaying those odd inspirational quotes that the principal required in classrooms now, along with large prints of several faces characterizing varying expressions, each face captioned with its respective emotion. But what you loved was how your class has made the room it’s own. Student artwork hung from the walls, depicting animals and superheroes and fairies and dragons and every which thing your students were obsessing over. As winter was steadily approaching, paper snowflakes dangled from the ceiling. Attached to thin pieces of twine, they spun around entrancingly like two-dimensional disco balls. Craft materials and toys and books and nap time mats were disorganized, making you tsk at the misplacement of the sacred objects of your room. You had to be better about reminding the children about post-class cleanup, however seeing as most of them were excited about the weekend, you didn’t put it past them. 

“Now that just won’t do,” you murmured to yourself. A small smirk spread across your face as you double checked the room, the door and the windows before cracking your knuckles and getting to work. 

With a diligent flick of your wrists, the room started to put itself back together. Ribbons of blue crackling energy rippled from your fingertips, swirling around the misplaced and discarded objects. The mats stacked themselves atop the large steel closet, while the markers and art supplies found themselves back into their respective containers. Forgotten student belongings ended up back in their respective cubbies, each one decorated by its owner, with colorful name tags and sweetly-placed stickers. As you made the room sort itself out, you let out a long breath.

You had to admit, it felt _amazing_. You rarely got the chance to use your powers at all. Sure, they got you out of minor inconveniences at times. Avoiding an awkward encounter? Teleporting in the bathroom always worked wonders. Lost your keys? You could always somehow see where they were and have them appear in your hand. You could float to reach shelves and lift things with your mind, but you ached for more. To be of use to others, to help. 

The bell rang, and you sighed in relief, dropping your hands as everything found it’s respective place. A soft smile settled on your face while you smoothed out your sweet corduroy overall dress. 

Now, finally, your day could start. 

You giggled excitedly and pushed open the door as your eyes traced the line of your students, piled up at the door. You smiled wide, holding it open to let them in. You greeted each one with a bright and cheerful “good morning!” before earning hugs, high-fives and polite nods in return. When every student had filtered in to their respective seats, you shuffled to the front of the class and stood up tall. 

“Good morning, class! It’s a beautiful day today, isn’t it? How’s everyone doing?”

A rippled array of responses from your eager five-year-olds met your ears, making you smile. 

“How was everyone’s weekend? Who wants to share?” Several hands shot up and you hummed playfully as you scanned the room. “Nile?”

A small brown-skinned boy grinned from ear to ear while he bounced excitedly, tugging on the sleeves of his Iron Man T-shirt. “I got a new puppy!” 

The class cooed and gasped in awe, excited at the prospect of a small dog. As Nile described the new pet excitedly, the class hung on every word, completely enamored with his story. You smiled as Nile shot back answers to their pressing questions, and it made your chest swell with pride. 

“Is it a boy-dog or a girl-dog?”

”He’s a boy!”

”What kinda dog?”

”My momma said he’s a sheepdog!” 

“He’s a sheep _and_ a dog?! No fair, Nile gets two pets in one!”

“I guess he’s just that cool!” 

“What’s his name?”

”I named him Sammy! And I named him all myself!”

“Sammy? Like _Falcon_?”

Nile’s chest puffed out in pride. There was never any doubt that his favorite superhero was Falcon. “He deserves the name of a hero!”

Every so often, there would be these little whispers of moments. These kids were your passion. And when you saw them support one another, care for one another, genuinely be interested in one another’s stories, it made you feel content. Happy. Just... completely and wholly full. You couldn’t owe it all to yourself, but you liked to think at least a fraction of what you did brought out the best in your kids. 

“That’s amazing, Nile! I love puppies. I’m sure someone as bright and kind and caring as you will take good care of her.” Nile grinned from ear to ear at your praise, and you stood, a sly smile on your face. “You know, Nile? I think you’re going to really going to enjoy the surprise I have planned for us today.” 

A wave of excited murmurs rippled across the kids. “A surprise? Is that why the schedule is half-blank?” Ella, a bright-eyed girl pointed to the whiteboard, where the schedule for the day was written out. However, all activities and classes after lunch had been erased, nothing there in its wake. 

You gasped, clapping your hands with a wide grin. “You noticed! Thank you so much, Ella! After you guys come back from lunch, we are going to have a _very_ special surprise set up for you all, just as long as you all are on your best behavior! _Understand_?” 

Your class suddenly straightened up, trying to keep in their seats with as much control as they could muster. However, nothing could help them from practically vibrating with excitement. 

The grin never dropped from your face as you spun on your heel, picking up your whiteboard marker. You could hardly contain your excitement either.   
  


——

Bucky had wanted little to do with this in the first place. However, here he stood, in a puke-green office, eyes flicking around the room in his five-second sweep before the pudgy school secretary peeled off sticker that read ‘visitor’ off of an A4 sheet of perfectly proportioned sticker paper and handed it to him. Bucky tried not to grimace as he reached for it with his vibranium hand and tried to ignore the stare of the secretary that lasted arguably too long. 

_Desk parallel to the door. Nothing resembling a weapon except for a dull letter opener and the pens in her ‘world’s best mom’ mug, but that would take way more dedication than what this lady exuded. Round table parallel to a door labeled ‘Principal E. Stanton.’ Left of the desk is the photocopy machine, which three girls are leaned over and ogling Sam, and on the right is several rows of file cabinets. Three windows on the office’s right. Three vantage points. No detectable hostiles. Quickest exit is the one we came in from, safest exit for all parties is the door adjoining the conference room._

Bucky relaxed his tensed shoulders after doing his rounds. He lacked experience with kids, the furthest his expertise around them went was he was one himself, and he’s pretty sure kids didn’t play jacks or trade cigarette boxes anymore. 

He glanced down at himself, suddenly unsure. He opted for a less noticeable look, and while he wanted to hide his vibranium arm, Steve insisted he wear a jacket that showed it off. He closed his eyes, recalling the conversation from that morning.

_“Steve, I don’t know kids all that well, but I don’t wanna give any of em nightmares.”_

_Steve only rolled his eyes. “Buck, c’mon. I’m going in with my shield, and Sam is going in with the Falcon pack. Kids think that kind of stuff is cool nowadays! And besides, what’s the worst that can happen? If one of em cries, is that gonna weigh on your conscience?”_

_Bucky turned his head and grumbled low in his throat. “I don’t have a conscience.”_

They both knew it to be a lie. But Steve knew better than to argue with Bucky, and Bucky knew better than to argue with Steve. So, here he stood, his leather jacket lined with a blue trim was missing the left sleeve, showing off the gold and black sheen of his vibranium arm. Coupled with black jeans, black boots and the fact that he had given himself time to shower and blow-dry his hair that morning, he didn’t feel half bad. His hair fell around his face, framing his stern features as renegade strands would gather in front of his eyes. All in all, he wasn’t too ashamed of his outfit. 

His mind turned back to the mission at hand. This Hydra spy could be just about anyone in the building, this Bucky knew. And knowing Hydra, they hardly cared for the welfare of people at all, including children and innocents, if they were to turn hostile. Bucky prayed for any outcome that wouldn’t involve a tragedy.

He glanced to his right and wanted to gag as he watched Sam give flirtatious winks to the female teachers gathered by the photocopier. Dawned in a tight army-green tee that did well to accentuate his muscles, Sam was showing all the female teachers that he was basically carved like a greek god. His well-trimmed fade accentuated his features just as his goatee did, and with that charming tooth-gap smile, he was the definition of the phrase “tall, dark and handsome.” The Falcon pack rested on his shoulders, and Steve nudged Sam’s shoulder right before he was about to offer the poor ladies a fly-around in his arms. 

Steve, similarly, was in what you’d expect to be civilian clothes. Plain brown leather jacket, white tee underneath, well-fit denim jeans. His trusty shield rested in his arm like it was part of him, an extension of his body that rested at his hip while he shook the secretary’s hand. Bucky couldn’t ignore the poor lady fawning over Steve’s signature charming half-smile and swept back blonde hair. 

“Thanks again, miss,” Steve praised, making quick work to glance at her wedding ring. 

The secretary giggled lightly. “Please, call me Jodeci. You guys are all set to see her! The kids are at recess right now, so you can make your way up to her room without a hitch. I’m happy you’re seeing her class, they’re such a well-behaved group of students! So bright, she does such a good job. Take the elevator or the steps up to the first floor, it’ll be the last room at the end of the hall! You’ll see her name on the door.” 

Bucky took in the praise for the mystery teacher, adding it to his databank. They murmured their thanks and started down the hall to the elevator, and it didn’t take long for Sam to break the silence. 

“So, Buck... I like your outfit. It’s very... graveyard chic.” 

“Sam...” Steve scolded like a doting hen. 

“What? He looks like he got an invitation to a costume party and decided to go as the word ‘conspicuous.’”

“Sam!”

“I know, I know, it’s disrespectful of me. Witches have strict dress codes, I should be more mindful of your culture, Buck.”

Bucky chuckled as he shook his head. “You know, I can see eighteen different ways to kill you at this exact moment.” The words came out with a less than serious tone, making Sam grin. 

“I’m just joshing you, Buck. You look like you got a lot on your mind.” 

Bucky’s smile gradually fell as he let out a long breath through his nose. “This is my mission. And I asked you guys to tag along today because this is way out of my expertise. I haven’t done something like this before, and it’s driving me nuts trying to figure out why you and Fury wanted me on this.” 

Steve quirked a brow. “Buck, what do you mean? You’ve done recon before. Escorts, too.”

Bucky clicked his tongue and shook his head as he jammed his hands into his pockets. “No, this is way different. There’s too many unknowns, too many variables... the less I know the less I have in my scope, I need answers before I can feel this mission out.”

Steve knew what Bucky wanted to say. Too many variables meant a lack of control. And if there’s one thing Bucky didn’t do, it was lose control. Sam clapped Bucky on the shoulder, a small smile gracing his lips. 

“C’mon now, Buck! You analyze and neutralize threats better than anybody I’ve ever met! You think quick on your feet better than any soldier I’ve ever known, you’re gonna do great.” 

Bucky turned back to Steve and Sam, glancing in between both of them before he cracked. For the first time that day, a genuine and gentle smile spread across his face. 

“Thank you guys.” 

The elevator let out a soft ‘ding’ as they arrived at their floor. With hasty steps, the three men strode across the hall, Sam chuckling as he took in their surroundings. 

“Everything is so low to the ground.” 

“Of course it is, Sam. It’s an elementary school,” Steve responded with a small laugh in his voice. 

“I know, I know. I guess I just remember it being bigger since I was, you know, small.” 

“To be fair, Bucky and I are super soldiers and you have a body that looks like it was chiseled out of marble. Most people are smaller than us.” 

When Bucky stopped at the classroom door, he stopped to stare at it for a beat too long. He couldn’t describe why it felt different than every other classroom door they’d passed. It was painted the same ugly yellow, after all. But when he glanced down at the poster that rested on the door, he was washed over with a strange sort of calm. He didn’t know what it was. Thick marker-scrawled letters swirled around in pretty cursive, spelling out your last name. Bucky traced his hands over the letters, and a faint smile twitched itself upward on his lips as his eyes flickered to the names of each student in your class, scrawled in their own writing along with miscellaneous doodles and stickers. 

It exuded a tenderness Bucky wasn’t familiar with. It was the presence of identity, an autographed memory. It was warm and kind and innocent, like a warm blanket on a stormy night. 

A sharp shriek followed by a series of curses halted Bucky’s train of thought. He shared a shocked glance with Sam and Steve before catapulting the door open, ready for anything. As soon as they were in, Bucky made quick work of sweeping the room. 

_My vantage point is the door. Northeast corner, small desk, messy, papers strewn across it, half eaten lunch, still-hot cup of coffee next to a large whiteboard, six feet by four feet. North side, three windows, several vantage points from buildings outside, no sign of forced entry. Northwest corner, large rug depicting some sort of cartoon caricature of the earth. Most of the room is taken up by tables and chairs arranged to face the board. Southwest corner, that’s where the noise came from. Steel closet, open, and..._

Bucky paused. Several mats were strewn about the floor, and his eyes flickered over them curiously. They were all identical, the only variant being there were different colors. They were soft-looking, reminding him of old war-time infirmary mats. 

A rustle underneath a lump of the folding mats caught his eye. He stalked over, ready for any form of offense as he took a quick glance back at Sam and Steve. They nodded resolutely before Bucky turned back and shifted the mats away from the lump that had formed underneath them. The last thing that he expected to see was... well, you. 

He flinched as a bubbling giggle poured from your lips and found himself staring in shock. He quickly assessed your person, eyes darting over your body to see if you possessed any sort of weapon. He would later use that as an excuse as to why his eyes lingered on you for just a touch too long. 

The first thing he noticed was your laugh.

It was a contagious giggle, like the worst kinds of virus, it spread almost exponentially through the room until every other person could feel it reverberate in their chest and bubble up with the joy that it so proudly produced. Bucky’s eyes traced down your body with cold and concise professionalism, as he would a mark to see any points of threat. His gaze lingered from your solid white long sleeve mockneck top to the sweet brown corduroy overall dress that covered it, to your white thigh high socks that Bucky noticed gently squeezed the bit of chub around your thigh in that cute way that it could, to your platform Mary Jane shoes with daisies on the buckles, to the matching daisy earrings that dangled from your earlobes, back up to meet your eyes. Your laughter took a while to die down, and when it had, you could finally open your eyes that had teared up in your giggle fit.

When your eyes finally met his, Bucky froze. There was so much that your gaze held. There was this genuine joy, a sweet sea of everything right in the world. It was peaceful, but there were so many things hidden beneath its surface. Familiarity was the only thing Bucky had recognized. Familiarity in the sense that yes, you looked familiar, but familiarity in the sense that it looked like you knew who he was too. 

And here you were, upside down gazing upwards into his eyes, fanning your face as you calmed down from your laugh attack. 

“I’m sorry, I really am. It’s just- I’m just now realizing how crazy I look.”

Bucky hadn’t realized he was staring until you spoke, wherein you sat up and spun around quickly before standing and brushing yourself off in a few swift moves. Bucky stood up after you had, still trying to assess if you posed any threat. 

A warm smile spread across your cheeks as your gaze flickered between the three men in front of you, staring at you in varying levels of shock. “Well, I guess if anyone disagrees, I can be a living testament that the Avengers do save lives.” You kicked the pile of mats gently, your cheeks rosy with embarrassment. “I wanted to get the nap time mats set up so that after you guys did your thing, they could go straight into nap time, but these things are way heavier than they look.” 

Sam chuckled at your quip, clearly taken aback by his first impression of you. “Looks like it. You screamed pretty loud, all that swearing and we were worried we’d find an avengers-level threat in here.” He sidled closer, clearly finding you cute as he held out his hand with a wink. “Sam Wilson. The world calls me Falcon, you can call me handsome.” 

You chuckled, quirking a curious brow as you shook his hand. “I think I’ll stick with Mr. Wilson, if that’s okay.”

Steve couldn’t help but snort at Sam’s failed attempt to woo another dame. “Don’t mind him, he tends to talk a big game. Steve Rogers, Captain America,” he introduced himself just as you think he would. Smooth, stern and assured and he stuck out his hand and shook your hand firmly. 

“You need no introduction, Captain Rogers. We’re all so happy that you called, even on such short notice. This is such a sweet thing to do for the kids, I’m incredibly happy you all could be here.” Steve smiled charmingly at your praise. 

“No need to thank us. We’ve heard a lot of good things about you and your class. I’m excited to meet them. And, uh...” Steve motioned to the brooding man to his left, staring at you with some undefined sort of intensity. Like he was trying to piece you together as if you were the jumbled pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. “I guess you’ve met your savior here just now. This is Sargent James Buchanan Barnes, my trusted confidant since we were kids.”

The man pressed his lips into a thin line, offering his flesh hand as he scanned your face. “Bucky.” A one-word introduction that let you know so much about him. 

And yet you giggled, slipping your hand into his and shaking it gently. “My hero. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Bucky.” 

Bucky nodded in affirmation, but his face remained cold and indifferent like carved stone. Sam rolled his eyes, gesturing to his cyborg friend. 

“Don’t mind his resting Bucky face. Trust me, he’s just as charmed by you as I am.” You had to chuckle at another one of Sam’s flirtatious quips. 

“You're too kind. The kids are big fans. You’re going to just love Nile. He’s such a bright young boy, he admires you so much. He even named his new puppy after you! He was so excited that he shared it with the whole class today.”

As you talked, Bucky watched you closely. His eyes narrowed at every nuance, every tic. If you were his mission, the quicker he understood you, the quicker he’d be able to neutralize the situation surrounding you. Your speech was open, you were bubbly and sweet in your lexicon and you dominated conversation, lovingly expressing yourself through words. But it was in complete contrast to your posture. It was closed, your feet were close together and pigeon-toed, your non-dominant shoulder facing the three of them as you spoke. You were distancing yourself, it was an defensive stance. You weren’t focused on attack. It’s like you were... protecting yourself. 

“All I’m wondering is, why my class specifically? I mean, it’s not like I’m not flattered, it’s just that I’m a little confused,” you articulated, tilting your head. 

“Here’s what I’m curious about, Steve,” Sam started, a hand on his hip. That was the first red flag. You should have seen it sooner. He dodged your question, seemingly about to go on a tangent of his own. “We heard this lovely sweet-looking thing swearing like a sailor out there! Hardly seems like a quality for a kindergarten teacher.”

You crossed your arms, feigning offense with a chuckle. “Hey! We can’t all be as perfect as the world’s saviors.”

Steve chuckled, leaning forward. “No, we can’t. I mean, it’s normal for all adults to swear, teachers included. What I’m wondering is if being an incredibly powerful being, endowed with the power of an infinity stone alongside being a former Hydra weapon is a very good quality in a kindergarten teacher.”

Your blood ran cold. 

It froze in your veins, like wet cement had suddenly hardened inside of you.

So that’s what it was. 

They had somehow tracked you, now they were going to leash and collar you. Lock you up and throw away the key. Either that or they wanted the power all to themselves. Either way, they wanted you in a cell.

You couldn’t afford that. Not when you had a happy life. Not when you’d found peace. You wouldn’t be haunted by the things you were forced to do when you were just a child. 

You swallowed a lump in your throat as you took a gentle step back, playing it off with a confused giggle. 

_‘Just do what your kids do best. Play dumb.’_ You thought to yourself, trying to buy time until you could think up an escape plan.

“I’m... so sorry, gentlemen. But did I miss a joke? It seems I have no idea what you’re talking about...” you made quick work to push your arms behind your back, hiding the swirling blue crackle of energy that surged from them. You just had to teleport away, lay low for a couple days, maybe stay at a friend’s house since they probably already knew where your apartment was. Oh, this complicates things a whole lot. 

But you gasped in shock as a vibranium hand gripped your arm, yanking it away from your back and toward the torso to which it belonged. Bucky stared down into your eyes, and you swear if his gaze could burn, it would singe the wall behind you with the phrase ‘do not fuck with me.’   
  


“Don’t do anything stupid. All we need is your cooperation.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just like last time, kind words and feedback are appreciated! I love you all and I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I like writing it!


	3. Crackle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit// whoops I had to re-post cuz I forgot the chapter title lol  
> Sorry this chapter took so long! I mean not really but it is a little late. I try to post my updates every other day but this one took a little longer to edit. I didn’t want it to be so long but enjoy!

You swallowed down the thick lump in your throat. As Bucky gripped your arm in his hand, your eyes flickered up to his. His gaze wasn’t angry at all, which was what his vice grip felt like. His expression was calm and calculating. Like his mind had already settled on the assumption that you weren’t something to be afraid of. 

“Buck!” Sam warned, lifting his hands and stepping forward cautiously. “Don’t just grip her up! That’s no way to treat a lady.” 

Bucky’s gaze flickered between your eyes before you spoke, a small smile curling up on your lips. 

“I’m afraid I have to agree with your friend, Sergeant Barnes. Especially since you guys seem like you have me confused with somebody else.”

“We don’t,” Bucky affirmed, and while he didn’t let go, his grip loosened. “We know who you are, Clairvoyant. And I want you to tread very lightly. Because right now, I don’t see you as a threat unless you give me a reason to. But I see you as one hell of a flight risk. So just hear us out, alright?” 

You bit your tongue, your eyes narrowing up at Bucky Barnes. How dare this man come into your school, put your kids at risk, and then treat you like some kind of criminal? You could feel the rage bubbling up in your chest. What did this man know of you? How dare he speak down to you? 

Steve noticed the tension, the dangerous blue crackle of energy in your eyes, he could practically smell how much you wanted to whoop Bucky’s ass. He stepped forward in an attempt to diffuse the situation. 

“Miss. Please, forgive Bucky’s... bluntness. We’re just trying to help, really. You care about these kids, don’t you?” 

You whipped over to Steve, lifting a finger on your free hand to him. “How dare you? How dare you come in here, put my kids in danger and then question how much I care about them?” You snarled sharply. 

“I know, I know, please trust me, I didn’t mean it like that. Buck, let her go,” Steve commanded, locking eyes with his friend. He had to establish trust first, be tender and offer a line. He now understood why Bucky wanted his help.

Bucky’s eyebrows knit together, but he listened, dropping your arm. You huffed, puffing out your cheeks as you massaged your wrist. “Rude.” 

Bucky quirked a brow at your childish response. How in any way did this girl used to be one of Hydra’s most dangerous assets?

Right next to himself, of course. 

Steve let out a long breath. “Thank you.” You had no idea if he was talking to you or Bucky, but you took a moment to re-collect yourself and nodded. 

“Listen. You clearly... know who I am. And there’s no hiding from people like you. But whatever it is you want, I can’t help you. I put all that behind me a long time ago.” Your voice was barely above a whisper as you spoke. Your eyes shifted to the tables and chairs scattered about the classroom and smiled. “These kids mean a lot to me.”

“We can tell,” Sam soothed, taking a step toward you. “But we wouldn’t drag you out like this unless we needed your help. Their lives might be at risk.” 

That got your attention. You snapped your gaze back to the three men in front of you, your brows furrowed. You could feel your heart pound in your chest. The Avengers didn’t scare you, no. Your kids being hurt did. 

“W-what...?” You whispered tentatively. 

Steve sighed, pulling out one of Tony’s patented Stark projection devices. He swiped his hand across the screen, files popping up in front of your face. The glow of the hologrammed files highlighted the contours of your frightened features as your eyes skimmed over the contents.

It was... you. Well, not _you_ you. In your mind, you were so far from that scared little girl. But it was you. Your files, your pictures, your burned and scarred body from repeated experimentation. You swallowed thickly, shifting your gaze away. “Why are you showing me this?” 

Bucky let out a sharp breath. Clearly, he had no desire to beat around this more than he had to. “Look, even after SHIELD went under, Hydra still has access to more resources than we know. When Hydra’s files were released to the public, Director Fury was able to find you.” 

When you turned to him, that’s when Bucky saw it. He couldn’t name it before, since there were so many other things swirling in your eyes. But now he saw it clear as day. A mischievous glint, highlighted by a small upturned smile. 

“Well, that’s not creepy at all. So, what is it? Let me guess, I’m a threat, a danger to society, destructive powers, yadda yadda, and now you’re gonna collar me and throw me in a cell somewhere like you did Wanda Maximoff, right?” You giggled, and Bucky was shocked when you brought up the events that had transpired in Germany. Of course, after Zemo was apprehended, the Accords were amended and the team was able to operate together again. 

Bucky ran his hand through his wavy hair, and even though the action seemed frustrated, a wave of sudden understanding washed over him. He sighed as he stared at you through his long, fluttering eyelashes. Your eyes locked onto his, and for a moment, you faltered. Then he spoke, his low baritone voice shaking you. “Listen, miss. We don’t want to lock you up. We came to you because we were given intel that a Hydra operative has infiltrated this school. Do you know what they’re after?” He tested, stepping closer to you with narrowed eyes. He was losing his patience. 

Your expression didn’t change as he stepped closer. Was he trying to scare you into listening? He surely didn’t have to. You could have been zipped away by now. He knew this. That’s why he kept speaking. 

“They're after you. You can bitch and moan all you want about how you want to leave Hydra behind, but they aren’t done with you yet.”

“Bucky...” Steve warned. Either Bucky didn’t hear him or didn’t care, cause he kept on with his less than sensitive tangent, striding closer and closer to you. 

“They’re coming for you, and they, unlike us, won’t hesitate to, as you so eloquently said: _‘collar you and and throw you in a cell somewhere.’”_

“Buck!” Steve scolded, this time sharper.

“You have an insurmountable amount of power, and they won’t stop at anything to get you where they want you. That includes hurting these kids. And trust me, I don’t doubt how much you love them. That’s what makes these Hydra guys lethal. You know better than anyone that they don’t exactly care about child welfare.” 

It felt like the air had been drawn from your lungs the minute he mentioned what had happened to you. He had stopped his menacing strides, standing right in front of you, his neck craned down to stare into your eyes. You bit your lip, but no matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t help but tremble. You wanted to show him that you weren’t afraid, that you would be fine just by yourself, but you weren’t exactly making a case for yourself. You were desperate for a way out. You wanted to zip away, but you couldn’t leave your kids alone and confused. You never broke away from Bucky’s eyes. They were cold, indifferent, the eyes of a dedicated man on a mission. 

“Please,” he whispered. You were almost convinced that he was human when his gaze softened upon seeing how scared you were, your frame shaking like a leaf. “I know that you’re afraid. I know you want to put what those bastards did behind you. Trust me, I do. We can protect you. All we need is your help.” 

You flinched when the bell rang, and you grasped at your chest to try and still your pounding heart. You breathed deep, breaking away from Bucky’s deathly stare. 

You cleared your throat, quickly gaining your composure and brushing off your dress. You let out a strained giggle to try and convince yourself that you were alright. “Ah, the kids will be up any minute now! I swear, I’d lose my head if it wasn’t attached to my shoulders.” 

You quickly skittered around your desk, cleaning it off and hiding your jars of candy. Bucky watched you curiously. He had always made quick work of analyzing everyone he came into contact with, but every second that he was in your presence, more and more peeled back. It was giving him a major headache. 

Sam glanced between his two super soldier comrades before looking back to you. “Miss-“

“Listen,” you murmured, raising your hand to the three gentlemen and smiling gently. “These kids are really excited to meet you. They’re probably going to bum rush you as soon as I open the door. I’ll tell you what-” Bucky’s eyes narrowed as you turned to him, that mischievous flicker returning to your eye. “I’ll bite. Just give the kids a good time, and at the end of the day, after I walk them down to be picked up, I will listen to you and answer all your questions. I’ll do whatever you want, just make sure the kids enjoy themselves. Okay?” 

Bucky flinched, caught completely off guard when your eyes glowed that bright blue. That mischief-filled, playful cerulean. He hesitantly nodded, making you smile wide. 

“Perfect!” You chirped, flicking your hand toward the steel closet. The soldiers watched in wonder as you hummed a happy song, the previously discarded nap-time mats swirling with blue energy and folding themselves back up. They tucked themselves against the back wall next to the rug, ready to be unfolded after this little presentation was done with. 

You sauntered to the door, hurriedly brushing yourself off. You whirled around, giving the three men one last look before you opened the door for your kids. 

They were lined up neatly, eyes wide and curious for whatever came next. As you bent down to their level and began prepping them with a warm smile, the soldiers leaned in to one another, whispering to themselves. 

Sam smirked, nudging Bucky’s gut with his elbow. “You must be _reeeeal_ happy that this is your mission, eh Buck?” 

Bucky frustratedly scratched his stubble, grumbling under his breath. “Quit it with the sarcasm. This girl is already giving me a migraine.” 

“Nononono, I’m not talking about _that_. I’m talking about Little Bo Peep over there is in your care, meaning you can keep her all to yourself.” 

Bucky glared over at his friend. “Sam. That’s gross. She’s a mission, not a... whatever it is that you’re suggesting.” 

“Okay, but you have to admit, she is _fine_ like _chilled wine_ , Buck. Just imagine it! ‘ _Oh Bucky, I’m so scared, please hold me in your cyborg arms!’_ ” Sam’s voice raised itself several octaves higher in a failed attempt to imitate yours. Bucky groaned, shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his leather jacket.

“I can’t even start to tell you how depraved that is. Look, we just have to get through this, then we can figure out a plan.” 

“A plan to get in them-“

“Sam.” 

“Alright, alright! I’m done.” 

“Something about this just isn’t sitting right with me...” Steve murmured. His blue eyes skimmed your back cautiously as he shook his head. “I don’t think she means harm. But why did she give in so fast? Especially if her priority is the students.” 

“Uh- maybe cause Buck scared the piss out of her?” 

Steve turned his gaze to Bucky with a grunt. “Yeah, that was the next thing I was going to mention. You know we want her to trust us, right? Poor thing was shaking like a field mouse.” 

Bucky crossed his arms, the cool metal of the vibranium soothing his nerves. “I told you, Fury never should have put me on this. Look- my job is to keep her safe and snuff out the Hydra spy. She doesn’t have to like me so that I can get the job done.” 

“But it’d help,” Steve interjected, straightening out his broad shoulders. “Just... try and be gentle. And maybe it’ll go down smoothly for all of us. She plays a key part in this, so we need to have her on our side.”

Bucky nodded, albeit begrudgingly. He used to make girls swoon just by looking at em, but whatever rugged charm he had when he was young and spry was lost to over 70 years of mind control. 

Their gaze turned to the door, where you slowly opened it to let through the dozens of kids. As soon as their eyes met the sight of the three soldiers, there was a pause. Their jaws dropped in awe, seeing their heroes stand before them. And then, after the beat of silence, Bucky flinched when screams erupted from the wide-eyed toddlers. 

They swarmed the three of them, screeching excitedly at the prospect of three whole avengers in their classroom. It was a dream for a lot of them, and they practically vibrated with excitement and energy as they skittered around them. Bucky swallowed down a lump in his throat, plagued by the sudden anxiety that he might step on one of them. 

Sam took kindly to the kids, not a spec of his charming allure lost when he knelt down and grinned ear to ear, offering fist bumps and high-fives to the rowdy class. Nile’s jaw hung wide open as he stared up at Sam, a gleam of what could only be described as pure adoration in his eye when Sam glanced his way. 

Sam’s toothy grin widened as he scooted closer to the young boy. “You must be Nile. Now, I’ve heard a lotta good things about you.” 

Nile practically burst with joy as he beamed. The Falcon, his hero, heard about _him?!_ He could hardly believe it. Nile took Sam’s hand in his much smaller one, radiating a purity a childhood innocence that warmed the three soldier’s hearts. 

It made Bucky smile. Not strained or forced, but this innocent love and adoration made his heart squeeze. Not that he expected anything for himself. Most of these kids were probably scared of him. A lot of them had probably been told he was a monster, a murderous fiend at the hands of Hydra that hadn’t changed a bit. And they were right. Bucky couldn’t be upset at that. It made perfect sense. He was a monster, the kind kids are told hide under their beds and hurt innocent people. 

A soft tug at his pant leg made him flinch, quickly snapping in the direction of the affront. His gaze turned downward, and his heart flipped in his chest. Staring up at him was a small girl, two big puffy twists hanging from her head and sealed off at the ends with flower-shaped hair clips. She grinned, showing off her recently lost front baby tooth, or lack thereof. But her pretty hair and cute demeanor wasn’t what caught Bucky’s attention, it was a stump that remained in place of where her left arm would have been. And when she smiled warmly at him, she excitedly pointed at his vibranium arm and said, 

“We match!” 

Bucky Barnes had never had a moment such as this one. He took down criminal scum for a living, bashed heads into walls and pointed AR-15’s at terrorist’s faces, but here stood a little girl with a warm smile, looking up to him in more sense than one. His heart absolutely melted. 

He hesitantly knelt down to match her height, pushing the collected strands of hair out of his face to appear less menacing. He smiled at her, gentle and kind as he held out his vibranium hand to hers. “Looks like we do, eh?” 

“Alright, class! Simmer down and circle up.” Your gentle voice rang out like honey amongst the buzzing of the small children. They immediately calmed at the sound of your voice before rushing to the large carpet in the corner of the room and sitting cross-legged in unison. 

Steve, Bucky and Sam were absolutely speechless. You hadn’t even raised your voice and the kids obeyed you better than any drill Sergeant. You let out that gentle giggle again, turning to the heroes with a loving gleam in your eye. 

“I’m sorry about them, they tend to get overexcited. But, as you can see, they are very happy to meet you.” You turned back to your students, leading the soldiers over to the large rug before hopping up on one of the tables and folding your hands together. “Now, class! You all are a group of such talented, amazing and bright students. And I know a lot of you are excited right now, and that makes me very happy. But, remember to be respectful and raise your hand if you have a question. Now, I’m going to pass it off to our one and only Captain America!” 

The kids cheered enthusiastically, egging the good Captain on as he took center stage with his brave grin plastered on his face.

“Hello, class! Now, your teacher tells me a lot about you. How you’re some of the bravest, kindest and smartest students in all of the USA.” Steve’s baby blue eyes made contact with every kid’s soul it felt like. When he spoke, he commanded not just attention, but respect and admiration. Especially from children. Their chests puffed out in pride at the kind words, he was one hell of a public speaker. 

He continued, taking a step forward and locking eyes with each student individually. “Well, we’re the Avengers! We save lives, we put bad guys away, and if you guys are as brave and kind and smart as your teacher here says you are, then we could learn some things from you, it seems.” 

As Steve continued on with his drawn-out speech, Bucky made quick work to glance at you again. You weren’t watching Steve, but the students, with kind and soft eyes, unmatched by any sort of admiration he had ever seen before. Your hand was over your heart as you smiled upon them, taking in their awe-struck and happy faces. It suddenly clicked what you reminded him of. You reminded Bucky of Renaissance paintings. The ones he used to see in churches and cathedrals, the ones depicting Mother Mary and her divine and virtuous air. You had the same eyes that they painted her with, the ones that shone with innocent love and pride. To Bucky, now that he had gotten a closer look at you in your natural habitat, you looked like you were pulled by the hand out of an oil painting.

That look in your eye was a clear contrast to that mischievous flicker he had seen before. He couldn’t piece it together for the life of him. 

The more time he was in your presence, the more you confused him, and Bucky despised that. 

Bucky hadn’t even realized he was staring until a bunch of tiny hands shot into the air. Steve had been talking for a while, more time than Bucky would like to have lost. Steve must have opened up the floor for questions, because his eyes scanned the room before he picked a kid to share their question. It was, of course, Nile. 

The young boy sprung up with a beaming grin. “Mister Falcon, can we see your wings?!” 

The class cheered in agreement as Sam laughed heartily from his chest. “Y’all sure?” The class screeched in agreement before Sam took a couple steps back and proudly unleashed his Falcon wings. 

The class whooped and hollered excitedly as they gathered around, reaching out to touch them. Sam chuckled, kneeling down to their height so they could get a better feel. “Careful! Some of the edges are sharp, okay?” 

“Can we see your shield too, Mister Captain America?” One of the students called excitedly. 

Steve chuckled, but he was happy to be the center of attention as he swung his trusty shield out in front of himself for the class to see. “What, this old thing?”

It was a dream come true for these kids. You giggled upon their excitement, getting to meet and interact with their heroes. “Hey, now! No horsing around with Captain America’s shield!” You cooed. 

Steve gave you a charming smile as he shook his head. “It’s alright, ma’am! It’s good that your kids are so adventurous, hm?” Steve glanced over at Bucky, clearly unsure of himself in this environment. His narrowed eyes and upturned lip showed him that. Steve grinned, turning back to the kids. “Who here knows what my shield is made outta?”

“Vibranium!” A chorus of toddler’s voices shouted out. Steve laughed at their eagerness. 

“That’s exactly right! Y’know, my good friend Bucky here? His arm is made out of the exact same thing!”

The kids turned to Bucky, their eyes wide in bewilderment and awe as they stared at his jet-black appendage. He hesitantly reached out with it to give the kids a better look, a soft pink blush tinging his bashful cheeks. 

It didn’t take long for the kids to swarm him, gathered around to get better looks at his arm. 

“Can we touch it?” The young girl with the puffy twists he had met earlier whispered out unsurely.

Bucky couldn’t help but let a small grin spread across his face as he knelt down to their level. “Go nuts.” 

“Be gentle!” You warned, a playful edge to your voice as your cohort nodded, reaching out to drag their fingers across the smooth vibranium. 

The choruses of “oohs” and “aahs” made Bucky chuckle deep in his chest. Nile dragged his finger across the gold-colored accents. 

“Where’d you get the arm from?” 

“All the way in Wakanda,” Bucky affirmed, glancing up at the kids. He met their eyes, finally, trying to swallow down his nervousness. It was like being surrounded by bunny rabbits. “It’s a small country in Africa, it’s a really nice place. Filled with some of the smartest people I know.” 

“Mister Barnes, why do they call you White Wolf?” 

Bucky smiled, scratching his chin as he responded to their eager questions. “Ah, just a little nickname they gave me. I took that back here with me from Wakanda too.” 

“But- they still call you the Winter Soldier, right?” A small girl whispered out, shuffling toward Bucky. He nodded in response, taking in her appearance. She had dark hair, black like crow feathers, a plain white headband sitting atop her neatly-combed locks. Against her pale skin and huge bright blue eyes, she looked like a porcelain doll. There was something about her eyes though that were just... sad. Something in them, something held in her gaze was inexplicably sad. 

“Yeah, they still call me that. But- that name is from a long time ago.” 

Her eyes suddenly flickered up to meet his. “Have you killed people?” 

Bucky stilled. Staring down at this girl, his eyebrows knit together in worry as the class suddenly fell silent. 

You stood abruptly, clapping your hands together with a nervous smile on your lips. “Olivia! That’s enough questions for now! Kids, the bell is about to ring and the room hasn’t even been cleaned up yet!” 

The class let out a collective groan, but nonetheless did their parts to pick up around the room. You let out a soft breath as the soldiers returned to your side. You turned to Bucky, your eyebrows knit together. 

“I am so sorry, I didn’t-“ 

“It’s okay,” he responded, shaking his head and nodding toward the class. “I was expecting something like it. I mean, their parents know who I am.” 

“Buck...” Sam doted, nudging him comfortingly. “For what it’s worth, you did great.” 

You smiled as the bell rung and clasped your hands together. “Ah! I have to walk them down now.” 

Steve nodded, picking up his trusty shield with a satisfied grin. “We’ll be here when you get back up.” 

“Oh, don’t wait here for me,” you murmured, shaking your head. “The janitor starts on the first floor and does the kindergarten rooms before the rest, but wait for me downstairs in the main office and I’ll meet you there! We can talk about what you need to talk about, because it sounds important. How’s that sound?” 

The soldiers shared a look and nodded, but not before Bucky caught it again. That little playful spec in your eye, like a kid had set eyes on a candy jar. He couldn’t name it, but he watched as you pulled on your coat and slung your purse on your shoulder. 

“Great job stacking the chairs, you guys! Come on, who’s line leader this week? Colin, that’s you!” You excitedly led the class out of the classroom before flicking off the light and held the door open for the three friends. Bucky watched your back as you led the students down the main stairwell, his eyes narrowed in speculation. 

“Alright, then. That was easier than I thought. To the main office, then?” Steve glanced between Sam and Bucky, who was still watching the stairwell even after you left. 

“I’ve got a weird feeling about this...” he mumbled. 

——

“Fuck! Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck _fuck_!” You hissed through your teeth, hurriedly weaving through the rush of teachers and students during dismissal time. Usually, you’d stay until five, of course they didn’t know that, and you’d like to keep it that way. 

And yet, you couldn’t help the mischievous giggle that spilled from your lips. A part of it felt relieving, doing something you weren’t supposed to that is. Maybe you just liked annoying people, but you had almost wished to see the look on the Winter Soldier’s face when he realized you’d ditched him.

You kept glancing over your shoulder, making sure those Avengers weren’t on your tail. They didn’t seem suspicious, which was a good sign, seeing as you had planned to ditch them from the start. 

You highly doubted that they were lying. But still, the thought nagged at you in the back of your head, thoughts of their deceit. What if they were lying? I mean, a Hydra spy in an elementary school? It’s too big of a risk, really. Why would they be after you? It had been years since you’d had anything to do with them, why would they come after you now? More than that, the Avengers were a fearsome group of people. Basically government-sanctioned murderers. Why did they need you to snuff out a spy? Unless they were lying to get you to work for them. No better than Hydra, just a bunch of high-powered bullies, hungry for power.

Nope. You were through, done with it, period. So, as you wove through the building, you cursed yourself. 

The safest option would be to teleport. But it was way too crowded, especially during dismissal. They were bound to see you anywhere, even the bathrooms were filled up. Your best bet was to keep moving and find somewhere safe to teleport where you wouldn’t be seen. 

You whirled around, checking your surroundings before swiping your key card and pushing open the side door to the building. You hurriedly scampered away from the school, breaking into a brisk walk as you walked the crowded New York streets in search for a safe place to zip away. 

“She sure is taking a while...” Sam mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets. 

“I’m sure she’s just making sure her kids get picked up safe. Did you see the way she looked at them? Man, she looks at those kids like they’re her world,” Steve replied wistfully, his arm resting on the office windowsill. 

Sam grinned, his eyes grazing over to Bucky. “I meant it when I said you did a good job. For your first time, I guess. You need to ease up a little, though.” 

Bucky exhaled through his nose, becoming impatient. “Kids are scared of me.” 

“Uh- were you in the same room I was? You were way more scared of those kids than they were of you,” Sam joshed, but his tone was serious. “You can deny it all you want, it’s the truth. You have a knack for kids.” 

“Where is she?” Bucky pressed, moving away from the subject. His eyes moved to staring out the window, shaking his head with a tsk. Steve nudged his best friend with a sigh. 

“Buck, you gotta learn that you have to finesse these things. You’re so tactical and careful on missions, you gotta ditch that. You might think of these kids and that girl as a mission, but the truth is that they’re people, and you have to use some of that old charm on em to get them to open up. See, when that girl gets down here, you gotta give her the old Bucky razzle dazzle! Girls used to stop in their tracks when they saw you, Buck! You gotta be the same way with her. It all comes down to...”

As Steve continued on his useless rambling, Bucky’s razor-sharp gaze caught on something out the office window. His eyes widened in shock, a growl rising in his throat as he swore. 

“Fuck!” He snarled, bolting out of the office and down the hall. “I knew it!” 

Sam and Steve glanced at each other in confusion before looking out the window, their eyes widening as well as they immediately picked up on what Bucky saw. 

Your frame, hurriedly drawing further and further away from the school with a cunning grin and fast-paced steps. 

They bolted after Bucky, zooming down the school halls.   
  


God, what a migraine this whole day was turning out to be.   
  


—

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your kinds words. Reader is kind of a playful soul hehe. As always, i love reading your comments so keep on writing them! Muah I love y’all <3


	4. Stone and Silver

You grimaced as you wove in and out of crowds on the busy New York street. Your eyes swept across the clusters of people, brushing shoulders with recently dismissed school kids and three PM stragglers.

Pulling out your phone, you shot Danny a quick text. _‘Hey, I was feeling sick so I left a bit early. Sry ;(‘_

You chuckled as he quickly responded, bitchy as always. ‘ _But we were supposed to go get waffles??? Ur tha worst >:( srsly tho are u ok?Do u need me to come by ur apartment?‘_

_’Nah I’ll be fine it’s just a stomach ache’_ you quickly shot back, not wanting to make Danny worry. You grinned before typing another message below the previous one. ‘ _Ill make it up to u, I promise!! :p’_

You sighed, glancing around before letting your eyes glow their wicked tesseract blue. You called your power forth, and your view of the ground in front of you melted away, your powers showing you what you wanted to see. Your special vision put you through to the school, attempting to see if the soldiers were still in the office, waiting like sitting ducks as you had left them.

Your heart thudded when you saw that they had left, Jodeci murmuring to the teachers about how the superheroes so quickly up and ran away. 

You blinked the sight away, your pace quickening as you hurriedly glanced around like a panicked meerkat. Crossing the intersection surrounded by workplaces and Delis, your eyes grew wide when you looked behind yourself as they caught on none other than the Winter Soldier, James Buchanan Barnes, waiting at the crosswalk for the light to turn green with his buddies. His leather jacket snug against his body, and his sweeping brown hair whirling with him as he glanced around with a deathly gaze.

He hadn’t noticed you yet, his trained eyes hurriedly skimming the crowd for you. You audibly swore under your breath, looking between buildings for any private place that you could teleport from without being seen. 

Now practically running, you ducked and weaved through people while murmuring quick apologies. The ripple only called more attention to you as Bucky’s eyes quickly darted to you squirming your way between people down the streets, hurriedly looking around for an escape. Anyone else wouldn’t have been able to pick it up, but being a super soldier with heightened senses, his gaze halted on the familiar sight of your coat and the pitter-patter of your daisy-buckle shoes. 

The snarl grew on his lip as he took off in your direction. 

You made a mad dash past swarms of students and businesspeople and the occasional dog-walker. You gasped as in your view came a secluded alleyway between a run-down laundromat and a convenience store. 

“Thank you, jesus,” you whispered in praise, despite the fact that you would hardly consider yourself religious. 

You slowed your pace down to a brisk walk when you glanced behind you and didn’t see the winter soldier. You let out a breath of relief, and the cheeky grin returned to your face as you neared the alleyway. 

You playfully nodded to the cat that had perched itself on the laundromat window and looked to both sides before dipping into the alleyway. You let out a breath you didn’t know you’d been holding and allowed yourself time to actually recover from basically sprinting eleven blocks.

After the brief distraction, you hurriedly slinked behind some dumpsters and breathed in, calling the Tesseract’s powers forth. It called for you, deep in your core, and you answered, feeling the energy surge through you. Your arms seeped the crackling blue energy, swirling enchantingly around your arms. Shutting your eyes, you imagined where you wanted to go. You visualized your apartment, warm and cozy, your playful cat, Cheese, mewing at the door and awaiting your return. You could feel it, all you had to do was... zip. 

Before you could, the chain of command that was your magic was broken by a rough shove to your back. You yelped as your front side came in contact with the brick wall in front of you as your arms were twisted behind your back, pinning you there. Your heart sped up as your cheek rested against the cool brick, and with a low hiss, you grit your teeth and began to thrash around. To still you, your attacker pressed his chest against your back while gripping your arms, and leaned down to growl. His breath tickled your ear as he spoke in a low and gravelly baritone. 

“You’re really getting on my nerves, you know that?” 

You gasped at the voice, your cheeks suddenly reddening in shame. Of course he would have found you. He was the Winter Soldier, he spent years searching people out, people barely knew he existed before Hydra went down, he certainly did his job well enough to track people down and snuff them out to remain undetected for seventy years. And yet here he was, his chest pressed against your back, and your face broke out into a playful grin. 

“Didn’t your buddy tell you that this is no way to treat a lady? Gripping me up like this and you haven’t even bought me dinner...” you cooed mischievously, pressing back against his chest. 

Bucky snarled, his grip tightening on your arms. “You think I’m enjoying this? You keep making my job harder and harder, Little Bo Peep.”

You let out a small whimper as his grip tightened. “Really? Cause from where I’m standing, you’re having a bit too much fun.” 

Bucky yanked you from the wall as a black car with tinted windows pulled up in front of the laundromat that had sandwiched the alleyway. “Congratulations, now I can’t take my hands off you.” 

“I’m flattered.” 

“You know I didn’t mean it like that. If I let you go, you’ll teleport away. I can’t risk that,” Bucky grumbled out before opening the car door. You paled when you saw Captain America and the Falcon waiting for you with curiously quirked brows. 

You cleared your throat, nodding politely. “Gentlemen. Good to see you again.” 

Bucky rolled his eyes before shoving you into the car, his left hand never releasing its vice grip from your arm. “Happy, the compound, please.” 

You pouted, glancing around curiously. You sat calmly between the slightly amused Sam and Bucky, biting the inside of your cheek as the man who they had addressed as ‘Happy’ began to drive. 

You leaned into Sam, your free hand tugging on his skin-tight T-shirt. “So, is your buddy always like that?” 

Sam held back a snicker, looking down at you questionably. “Mother goose, he is not very pleased with you after what you pulled.” 

You rolled your eyes with a small smirk. “All these nicknames. They’re cute, but I have a name, you know.” 

“We know your name,” Bucky murmured gruffly. “We know everything about you. And now, we know that you’re an absolute brat and you can’t be trusted on your own.” 

“Oh, aren’t you just a charmer, Mister White Wolf. You know, I know a thing or two about you myself,” you said smoothly, grinning as your eyes flashed that dangerous sapphire hue again. 

Bucky’s eyes narrowed down at you, but he said nothing in reply. However, his grip got noticeably tighter. 

“What I wanna know is, why did you run?” Steve questioned from the front seat before whirling around to glance at you. You grimaced, your eyes narrowing at Steve as they returned to their natural color. 

“I mean- you can’t blame me. You come unannounced to my job, put my kids at risk, and then manhandle me over something you could very well be lying about. How do I know that you guys aren’t planning on locking me up? Or maybe you just want to exploit my powers. After all, that’s what you people do best...” you murmured, turning your head and glaring out the window. 

Bucky massaged his temple with his free hand. His head tipped forward, making his chin-length hair gather in front of his eyes. He turned to you, glaring at you darkly through the strands. “Bo Peep, for a teacher, you really have a hard time listening.” 

You quirked a brow, smirking as you leaned in next to him. “You wanna kiss me so bad that it makes you look stupid.” Of course your words held no meaning or truth in your eyes, but truth be told, you just wanted to rile him up. 

Bucky growled, yanking at your arm. “You know, I’m starting to think that the reason you control kids so well is because you are one yourself.”

You rolled your eyes before turning your attention back to the windshield. “‘Control’,” you repeated with a dry chuckle. “Like that has anything to do with it. But of course you people would think that it does.” 

Bucky’s eyes narrowed at you. He wanted to egg you on, ask what you meant, but he fell silent again. His eyes settled back onto the road as Happy pulled into the compound. 

You hummed curiously, your eyes taking in the impressive sight of the Avengers compound. It was huge, pristine with different air strips and training grounds. Driving through the parking lot was an eternity in and of itself. It made you smile, imagining your students’ reactions if they were to see it. 

Happy slowed to a halt in front of the compound entrance. Steve smiled warmly at the man, patting him on the shoulder and paying him thanks as Bucky swung the door open to step out and pull you with him. 

As Bucky walked you to the door, you eyed the building carefully. Why had they brought you here? You turned back to the grumpy man who held you, and instead of asking that question, asked a different one.

“Tell me, Sarge. How’d you know?” 

“Know what?” He huffed out, leaning down next to the door and allowing for the retinal scan. When the door beeped and clicked unlocked, he pulled it open and held the door for Steve and Sam. 

“How’d you know that I wouldn’t teleport with you?” You murmured, squinting at him curiously. 

His unwavering grip on you gave you time to finally notice his arm up close. His vibranium one, that is. For that was the one that gripped you, your right elbow resting between his clawed and sleek black fingers. It was like an intricate piece of art rather than deadly tech. Cables of gold plating ran across the sleek black finish like country roads, weaving and dancing with one another. Its presence was cooling on your arm, but you had warmed up to its temperature since Bucky had been holding you for so long. 

He pulled you along before replying gruffly. “It was denomination, really. I know that your powers work similar to the cube. So if somebody touches you, they teleport with you. I knew you wouldn’t take the risk. I made a bet, and I was right.” 

You quirked a curious brow at him. A bet? Really? That hadn’t even been the major reason. It was one of them, certainly. Teleporting would have been futile if the soldier was still with you, and while the thought was funny of zipping to some foreign country just to ditch him there before hopping away, it was too risky. When you had first teleported, all those years ago in the lab, it practically shredded your body apart. If it weren’t for whatever syrup those bastards put in your body to speed up your healing process, you probably would have died. You had scars, now faded but hidden, from your first attempts at fast traveling, but you had no idea how it would affect somebody else. It was prolonged exposure to the tesseract that made the injury to your body subside. If Bucky had teleported with you, he might have ended up hurt or torn up or burned like you were. That was too big a risk in and of itself. 

Not that you’d ever tell him that. 

So you nodded, taking it in as he led you up the compound steps. Your eyes darted around curiously, taking in the gorgeous views. You could see lounge areas, conference rooms, dining halls, just about anything and everything. It seemed to gleam, the whites and silvers and blue hues cast over made it look so surreal and futuristic. Part of it blew your mind, and the other part made you nervous, like you didn’t belong in such a place. It felt like plopping a pencil-top troll doll into a Barbie dream-house. It just didn’t fit together. 

Bucky glanced down at you in your awe-filled state. Your eyes curious, your lips slightly parted as you took it in. He couldn’t understand it, but the look on your face made him feel... pleased. 

He said nothing to articulate these thoughts, however, as he pushed open one of two glass doors that led into a large conference room. All of the heads swiveled around to look at you, and your cheeks suddenly burned at all of the attention. The room quieted, and your eyes flickered about the place, taking in the fact that each of the Avengers were looking at you, their looks varying from curiosity to disinterest. 

You let a grin spread across your face as you tugged against Bucky’s grip. “Hi! Great job sending this guy to kidnap me, by the way. Real fun, I like his attitude.” 

Bucky huffed in exasperation. “She was a flight risk.” 

You immediately recognized the likes of Tony Stark. The most famous man in the country, probably, he stared at you with a curious glint in his eye. Dawned in a Black Sabbath tee, tight jeans, and his signature swooping hair, he approached with little hesitation. 

“Hm. Not what I was expecting. Prettier in person. But you’re small for a super soldier. So, Ms. Honey, are you a friend or are you gonna commit heinous crimes and make us look bad?” 

You clicked your tongue, not letting your grin falter for a second. You let your eyes crackle that familiar sapphire as a warning. You obviously weren’t a fan of how Tony Stark looked down on you. “I vary from time to time.” 

Banner shivered, practically cowering behind Nat. “Are we sure she should be here?” 

“Yes, we are,” Steve affirmed, striding toward you with a curious brow. “I watched you with your kids. I doubt you’re keen on hurting anybody. You ran, which was a problem for us, but Bucky certainly didn’t have to manhandle you.” He glanced over at his trusted comrade who simply shrugged. 

“She ran, I followed. You said get her here, she’s here.” He explained it simply and concisely, making you chuckle and glance up at the team. 

“Is he always this charming or am I just lucky?” 

“She is scared,” a gentle voice called out amongst the murmurs of the team. Wanda Maximoff stepped forward, her eyes glowing a familiar scarlet as she strode toward you. “She laughs in your face, but she is afraid.” 

Your grin fell as you turned away, feeling your cheeks burn in shame. “Hey, don’t read my thoughts without permission! That’s rude.” 

“So you do understand, then,” Natasha Romanoff questioned, stepping forward beside Wanda. The redheads eyed you curiously side by side as Nat continued. “You grasp that lives are at stake here. Namely yours if Hydra gets their hands on you.” 

You blushed under Nat’s hard and determined gaze. This was the first time in a while that you felt this flustered. You had to admit, she was so gorgeous, it was giving you cotton mouth. You swallowed, casting your eyes down. “Look, I don’t know if all this is true. Y’all could be lying to me and I’d have no idea ‘til I’m being prodded at again.” 

“We wouldn’t do that.” His voice was a low murmur when he spoke, but you cast your eyes up at Vision as he talked. He seemed genuinely concerned, but took small steps toward you with kindness in his synthezoid eyes. “I know that trusting people can be hard in situations like this. But our job is saving people.” 

The person you had least expected was the infamous Nick Fury. Your eyes widened as he stepped forward, his black trench coat accentuating his broad shoulders and commanding presence. You were practically speechless. But he spoke, staring through you with his one good eye. “We need your assistance. We aren’t asking you to use your powers for us or fight for us. All we want is your help to identify the Hydra spy and snuff them out before they’re able to hurt anyone.”

“You guys are pros. How am I supposed to help with that? I’m just a kindergarten teacher,” you shot back. Your mischievous mood was dimming, and you grew more tired with this charade as the minutes passed. But Fury spoke again, patient yet stern. That’s when you noticed. They were being... exceedingly patient. Well, obviously not counting Bucky. Thirty minutes ago he had shoved your face into a brick wall. But the rest of the Avengers were patient in their tone. Like they knew that it was hard for you to trust. 

“By giving us intel,” Fury continued. “You’ve been a teacher for a few years now, you must know your coworkers fairly well. You’ll do work on the inside, and Sergeant Barnes, who you’ve so kindly met, will do the heavy lifting on the outside. It is his job to protect you, so if you have a bone to pick, it’s his ass.” 

You curiously glanced up at Bucky, who was staring blankly back at you with disinterest. You looked from him, to his chest, to the hand that gripped your arm. You felt almost embarrassed to have been complaining so much. As much as you were afraid of Hydra for what they did to you, Bucky had been through way worse. Seventy years of torture and mind control was under his belt. He knew how that could make someone distrustful. He was the prime example. You softened under his grip, not even having noticed how much tension you were holding. You let out a small sigh before giving a small nod. 

“Okay. I’ll help you.” 

Bucky let out a breath of relief, letting his head tip forward. “Sweet Jesus.”

You let out that signature giggle again, and had your eyes not closed when you laughed, you would have noticed the tiniest of grins on Bucky’s lips at the sound. He straightened up, back to his resting soldier pose, and breathed out as Tony started to speak. 

“Sweet! Alright, Frizzle. You have a room prepared in the compound, Happy is already on his way to that dingy hole you call your apartment, and you’ll be all set up for—“

“Wait, slow down!” You interrupted, your cheeks reddening again at the thought of anybody at all seeing your apartment. “I-I can’t stay here! I mean- there’s my job and my friends come over a lot, what if they get suspicious? A-and what about my cat? I can’t stay here!” 

“It’s the place that we can best protect you,” Bucky interjected, waving away your qualms as if they were just a silly detail. “Either Happy or I will escort you to and from your job every day. You can provide us insights to anyone you suspect or give us knowledge into the people you work with. Your things will be moved into the compound so that we have better access to you.”

You pouted gently, staring up at Bucky with wide eyes. “And my cat?”

Bucky sighed in exhaustion before massaging his temple with his free hand. He despised cats. “I guess, yeah, your cat too.” 

You smiled wide, reverberating with joy as you bounced up and down. “Well this is gonna be fun!” 

Tony grimaced before handing Bucky a box. “I hate cats, but anyways, here.” Bucky nodded, thanking him before using his free hand to pop it open and gingerly lift out a silver bracelet. 

Bucky noticed as you nervously shifted away. “Is that... an inhibitor or something? A shock bracelet?” 

“No, because you aren’t a dog, and you have autonomy,” Bucky murmured out, holding up your arm that he was still holding onto. He glanced back into your eyes, and bit his tongue when he saw how nervous you looked. 

He lifted the bracelet, letting you see it in all its glory. It was intricate while simple, plain and sleek steel but it even had loops for charms. In case you felt like decorating. “I had Tony make it. It’s a GPS, and it monitors your pulse. FRIDAY will alert me if you’re in danger.” 

You tilted your head, confused. “Who’s Friday?” 

“I am, Miss.” You jumped as a soft Irish-sounding robotic voice emanated from the ceiling.

Tony quirked a brow at you, but then again, he realized that you weren’t going to be used to a lot of Stark tech. “I designed it special so that it alerts Grumpy over here if FRIDAY detects that somebody who isn’t you takes it off. It’s not an inhibitor or a shock collar, just a lil’ somethin’ to give him peace of mind.” Tony shoved his hands into his pockets before adding, “You are his mission, after all.”

You glanced back to Bucky, who was still holding the bracelet. “Just humor me,” he murmured, nudging it in your direction. He was trusting you. He was hoping that in your heart, you knew that it was smart not to leave. And the sooner that he got this job done, the sooner that you two could return to your normal lives. 

So you nodded, taking the bracelet and gingerly slipping it on. You felt it beep to life, and felt a soft hum emanate from it. 

Bucky let out a relieved breath. “It’s reading your pulse right now. The vibration should stop in a couple minutes after it’s done calibrating.” 

You nodded before grinning up at him politely. The way you had in your classroom, before he had chased you down and dragged you here, when the biggest threat to your life to your knowledge was a stack of nap-time mats. You smiled innocently and gratefully before placing a hand overtop his. “Thank you.” 

Bucky couldn’t help but yank his arm back instinctively. He coughed to cover it up, trying to ignore the hurt wince in your eye. He was panicked, didn’t know how to react to the genuinely tender touch. He was afraid he would hurt you if your hands lingered, as if your skin was as fragile as a butterfly’s wings. Finally, he pulled both his arms away from your body, eyeing you warily so that you wouldn’t zip away. But you remained, hands holding your own shoulders in a soft and nervous self-hug. 

Tony coughed, crossing his arms over his chest. “Uh- hello? No thanks for me? The guy that made it? Very nice, Frizzle.”

You blushed, lowering your head in embarrassment. It was endearing in an odd way to Bucky that you could go from troublemaker to flustered in a matter of seconds. 

Fury cleared his throat, nodding toward you before motioning toward the rest of the room. “I think you’re gonna enjoy your stay. Let’s get you acquainted with the rest of the team, hm?”

——


	5. Lesson One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky learns a little bit more about you. It gives him a headache.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! I hope you’re enjoying the story so far. Again, I love reading your comments! <3 Enjoy this chapter, I was going through a roller coaster of emotions writing it.

“Ah- just the man I wanted to see! Barnes, get in here,” Tony mumbled, biting on a piece of toast as he invited Bucky into his lab.

Bucky hated it in Tony’s corner of the compound. It was confusing to him, every time he thought he figured something out, there was something new to perplex him. All of the heavy machinery and glowing holograms as Stark tinkered annoyed him, and Tony knew that, but not like either of them could do anything about it. Even if Tony could, he wasn’t sure that he would, just cause he liked seeing Bucky annoyed.

But as Bucky approached, rounding Tony’s work table, Tony slid him a black box, no bigger than one made for cigars, and returned to soldering the train wreck of circuits that sat on the table.

Bucky hummed, lifting the box curiously. “What’s this?”

“Just a precaution, really,” Tony replied, sliding off his soldering goggles before wiping his hands clean on a well-used rag. “I know we already gave Frizzle a tracking bracelet, but this is just a little gift from me to you. Hopefully it’ll make your job easier.” 

Bucky quirked a curious brow at Tony’s choice of words before lifting open the box. In it lay what looked to be a thick silver choker necklace. It had a rectangular centerpiece where it clicked in place, and a flashing light displayed its lack of activation, waiting to be of use. Underneath it in the box was two silver cuff-like forearm braces, sleek in their design as everything else was. 

Bucky’s eyebrows knit together in deep thought. “What am I looking at, Stark? I may have missed seventy years, but I don’t think girls wear jewelry like this.” 

“They’re inhibitors,” Tony said simply, taking another bite of his toast. “Cruelty-free, of course. You seemed opposed to shock collars. The collar is something simple, just hinders her powers so she can’t, you know, teleport away in case she gets difficult. The cuffs are just like regular handcuffs but magnetic, same deal, inhibitors but they keep her hands where you can see ‘em.” 

Bucky Barnes paused as he stared at the three artifacts. Tony must have used so many resources to make them. Especially if they were made to inhibit your tesseract energy. But he didn’t feel bad when he shook his head, setting the box back on the table and pushing it toward the genius that was Tony Stark. “No thanks, Tony. She’s not a dog, she doesn’t need a collar.” 

“You said it herself, she’s a flight risk. Do you wanna take that chance? You know, in case she gets tired of your whole... resting Bucky face,” Tony quipped before exchanging his soldering goggles for his glasses. Bucky narrowed his eyes at Tony, chewing on the inside of his cheek.

“She knows what’s good for her. If we collar her, we’re just as bad as Hydra. She deserves her autonomy just like the rest of us.” 

“Just _take_ it,” Tony insisted, sliding the box back over to Bucky. “Do you know how much time I spent on getting the right materials to inhibit _tesseract energy_? C’mon, it’s a present, just for you!”

Bucky traced his hands over the box thoughtfully, his expression saying everything for him. He thought about your giggle, the way you carried yourself, the way you got on his nerves, but most of all the way you tensed up when he offered you the Stark bracelet that afternoon.

That’s when Bucky realized it. Wordlessly, what had taken form was a mutual trust between the two of you. He was trusting you not to teleport away. You were trusting him, as the person who was in charge of you, not to put you under lock and key. To slap a collar or cuffs on you would be a complete betrayal of that trust. It made Bucky sick to his stomach just thinking about it. 

“Just in case,” Tony repeated, crossing his arms over his chest. “Keep it with you. In your room, hide it under your pillow, whatever. Think of it like keeping a weapon in your bedside drawer. It’s just a precaution.” 

Bucky let out a soft sigh as he picked up the box with cautious hands. 

“Just a precaution...” he repeated.

  
——

  
Your first night in the compound was the hardest. 

Firstly, it was huge. You kept getting lost on your way back to your bedroom. Happy and some of Stark’s employees had speedily moved all of your belongings into the compound, including Cheese, your easily excited orange tabby cat. He mewed at Happy as you shook his hand, thanking him for the umpteenth time. 

“I’m so sorry for all the trouble! All of this was such short notice, I hope I didn’t make too much work for you...” you murmured bashfully. 

Happy shook his head before giving you a soft chuckle to soothe your nerves. “It’s just fine, Miss. Just doing my job. Let me know if Tony or the guys give you a hard time, and I’ll have a word with ‘em.” You gave yourself a minute to take in his appearance. He was rosy-cheeked and heavy-set with swoops of curly dark hair. He looked intimidating, but his kind smile quickly off-set his scary bodyguard demeanor. 

You giggled, picking up Cheese and letting him purr into your shoulder. “Thank you, Mister Hogan. I’m just not used to something like... _this_.” 

Happy nodded, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “I get you. My first couple of days around the Avengers were nerve-wracking. But you come to realize that they’re just people. I mean- super-people, but they’re people. And please, just call me Happy.” 

Cheese mewed in agreement, making you smile. Happy had a point. They had offered you refuge in the compound, but you still felt the need that you had to try not to get in their way.

The next day went less hectic than you’d expect. Happy escorted you to school, and you had requested that he parked around the corner so nobody would see you hop out of a suspicious-looking car with tinted windows. You weren’t a celebrity or anything. Again, at the end of the day, you were just a kindergarten teacher. 

And the day went completely normally. Nothing had changed, despite your life feeling as though it had transitioned to a gray area that you were still unfamiliar with. But you couldn’t neglect your students, they were your constants. Nothing could outweigh how much you cared for them and how passionate you were about teaching them. And after your regular day of teaching, talking shit with Danny during breaks, and teaching some more, Happy was back to pick you up and drop you off at the compound, anticipating this as a new routine. 

When Happy had left and you’d finally gotten settled, you were able to plop your things down and finally breathe. The past two days had been so much to process. 

You missed forty-eight hours ago, when your life was still normal and you weren’t aware of any threats on your life. Now, you were surrounded by superheroes, in an unfamiliar place that was bigger than most hotels you’d stayed at, being monitored by them, while some weird, brooding, grumpy, obnoxious seventy-year old was in charge of you. But you had to play nice, lives were at stake. You wouldn’t be able to forgive yourself if Hydra hurt anyone while trying to get to you. 

It made your thoughts roll back to what Fury said before. You had to suspect your own coworkers? None of them stood out, really. Not as being part of an organized crime syndicate. You caught Mr. Miller, the home economics teacher, taking upskirt photos of you in the teachers’ lounge. Mrs. White was notorious for taking all of the reserved snacks in the fridge. But other than that, you couldn’t point a finger at any of them. One of them was a Hydra op with you in mind though, and that was the most terrifying truth. It could really be anyone. 

You didn’t have any idea that you were floating until a knock sounded at your door. You gasped, glancing down and noticing that you were a good four feet above your bed. You plopped back down to earth, biting the inside of your cheek as you pulled the door open. 

In all his glory, there he stood, the winter soldier. He looked as if he’d just showered, his skin shining and dawning a plain black T-shirt. His still-damp hair was pulled back into a knot at the back of his neck, and he scratched his stubble before addressing you. 

“Settling in okay?” 

You stared at him for a good couple seconds. The question was disinterested, a greeter in place of a formal ‘hello’ as most of his questions concerning your welfare were. It was when he asked it that you finally noticed an edge to his voice, like a serrated knife, laced with an old school Brooklin accent. It was charming, for sure.

Nevertheless, you hummed politely and bowed your head in greeting. “As well as I can. It’s been a confusing day.”

Bucky quirked a brow, his eyes flickering to the floor, where he noticed that your feet weren’t touching it. “I’ll say.” 

You glanced down, clearing your throat when you noticed and bashfully lowered yourself down. “Sorry. ‘S habit...” you murmured, fiddling with your hands as your cheeks dawned an embarrassed tint of pink. “When I get anxious, I float. I do it when I sleep sometimes, too. I don’t notice until Cheese is screaming at me.” 

Bucky nodded curiously, his eyes drawn on your much smaller frame. “Well, don’t make me tie a string to you or somethin’. I don’t want you floating away on me.” 

You chuckled, narrowing your eyes at him playfully before leaning against the doorframe. “You know, now I’m tempted to try just to see you pissed off.” 

The soldier rolled his eyes before he cast them down to your cat. “Come on out. I need to work on you.” His words were blunt and to the point, making you scoff at the sudden orders.

“You should write a book titled ‘shit you should never say to women,’ cause you sound like a prick.”

Bucky does nothing but grimace at your defiance. “Is this how you treat your kids? You swear like a sailor before you put them up for nap time?”

“You’re not one of my kids, Barnes. Do you want me to treat you like one? I’d be less than happy if I ever had to bandage up your boo-boos and give you juice for snack time,” you shot back with an indignant chuckle. You could feel the annoyance ripple off of Bucky. 

“Just get out here before I have to do something less than gentlemanly.” 

The words were mocking and biting, making you glare his way before a cunning smirk worked its way to your face. “Of course, Sergeant!” You cooed, a crackle of blue surrounding you before you vanished in a hazy glow. 

Bucky gasped, his heart thudding in his chest as he hurriedly looked around. Damn it, stupid girl. He had lost her already? She was such a motherfucking brat, of course she wanted to be difficult. It was only a half a second pause before you appeared behind Bucky, grinning ear to ear. “Well, come on then! Don’t you have to ‘work on me’?”

Bucky growled low in his throat. Another moment, another migraine. He whirled around, meeting your eyes for a brief moment before starting down the compound corridor. “Come on.” 

You giggled under your breath but followed him, your hands folded behind you. “I have a question.” 

“Hm?” 

“If we’re trying to be low profile, why move me out of my apartment? I mean- if the Hydra op is watching me, won’t they become suspicious?” 

Bucky nodded firmly, eyes flickering around the hallway as he led you downstairs. “That’s kind of what we’re hoping for. See, any sudden resignations will give us means to suspect that person. But, it’s mostly just a precaution to keep you safe. Your routine is the most predictable thing about you, we’re trying to throw this guy off a bit.” 

It made sense. You hummed, casting your eyes down and nodding. “So... it really could be anyone?” 

“Yes. Which is why it’s _imperative_ that you remain vigilant at all times. Hear me?” He turned to lock eyes with you, Your lips parted while you stared, but you nodded absentmindedly. You didn’t realize you were staring until he stopped you, and you shifted your gaze to see that he had brought you to the empty conference room. 

“You here to tell me how well your stocks are doing?” You murmured with a grin, eyes skimming the room before falling back on Bucky. He wasn’t amused. 

“Remaining vigilant at all times means taking in your surroundings as quick as possible. Neuroscientists say that the human brain can process entire images that the eye sees for as little as 13 milliseconds. You have to take in everything quickly and easily in order to identify any threat. Now-“ 

Before you could question him, Bucky had firm hold of your arm and whirled you around to face him. He pulled you in by your waist with his right hand, and held your arm in his left. A reoccurring theme, it seemed, as it made you tense up from the feeling of the vibranium against your arm, but more so the feel of his massive hand against your waist. 

You could feel yourself beginning to fluster as he assaulted you with questions. “Now, what did the room look like? Tell me in detail.” You narrowed your eyes at him, annoyed. 

“You only gave me like- five seconds to look at it.” 

“Every time I walk into a room, I assess every bit of it before I can settle. It’s one of the first things you learn as a soldier.” You wanted to ask him if it was part of basic training, or the Winter Soldier training, but you bit your tongue. Some questions are better off as just that- questions. “I analyze distances, number of potential hostiles, vantage points, everything top to bottom to identify a threat. Now, tell me. What did you notice about the room?” 

When you tried to turn your head to peek back at it, he took a firm hold of your chin and tilted your head back to look at him. He kept his fingers there, keeping your eyes trained on him as he glared down at you in annoyance. Little bits of hair escaped from his haphazard bun, framing his sharp cheekbones. 

You tried to ignore the way your heart jumped when he had grabbed you like that. The touch was commanding and swift, but inexplicably gentle. Again, it had felt as if he was afraid he’d hurt you. Like you were a doll, he was nervous that any sudden motion could break you in half. And as you held his gaze, his strong, commanding, unwavering gaze, it was in that second that you realized his eyes weren’t just blue. They had a tinge of gray in them, like the beginning rumbles of a stormy sky. They were beautiful, but mysterious. They held something you couldn’t read.

So you shrugged, trying not to show your obvious flustering. “I-I don’t know- there’s a table in the middle of the room? The walls are greyish blue...” _Like your eyes..._

“What _size_ table?”

“Uhm- I don’t know, maybe... seventeen, twenty feet long? It’s rectangular...”

“How many chairs?”

“I-I don’t know... one on each end of the table with maybe eight on the long sides? So, twenty chairs?” 

“How far is it from where you’re standing?” 

“I don’t know...”

“How long would it have taken you to get from the furthest seat away to the door?”

“What? I don’t know!” 

Bucky huffed, rolling his eyes in annoyance. He pulled his hand away from your chin, forming his fingers into a gun shape and pushing his fingers to your temple. “Great. You were so focused on the color of the walls, you failed to notice the sniper outside the window, and the hostile that lured you in here with a shotgun to the back of your head. Congratulations, you died.”

You snarled, wriggling against Bucky’s grip. His fingers were starting to feel hot to the touch. “Well, I don’t exactly have military training!” 

“Then what did they teach you?”

“What?”

“What did Hydra teach you, then?” 

You halted, your breath stilling at the question. Bucky was unperturbed, as if his question wasn’t completely invasive. You snarled, shoving him away in a fit of annoyance. 

“What do you mean, ‘what did they teach me’?”

His eyes scanned you up and down as you broke away from him and scrambled back against the wall. He was becoming increasingly annoyed. “You were trained, right? For two years, but you were still trained. How did they use your powers? They had to have taught you something.” 

You grimaced at the memories returning to light, your back pressed firm against the cool drywall. “Why are you being so rude?” 

“Rude?” Bucky snarled out, storming over to you and standing over you. He bared his teeth, seething as his eyes scanned your face. “Listen, Peep. I’m trying to keep you alive. You keep whining and moaning and getting in my way, and I’m just trying to help. So stop being a baby and work with me a bit here. They kept you under control, somehow. They had to have taught you something to keep yourself alive. They knew you were too valuable to lose...” he murmured, scanning your much smaller frame. 

His words made you seize up. You hated him. You were absolutely sure of it. You knew he was just trying to keep you safe, but you wanted to kill him where he stood. That dangerous crackle of blue returned to your eyes, making him falter for just a second before you huffed, yanking down the collar of your mockneck shirt to show him your neck. 

Bucky paused. The ugly snarl on his lip faded out to a confused and shocked expression dancing on his face. Your neck was blistered, healed over but still riddled with burn scars that ran from the left of your neck, right below your jawline, down to your collarbone. 

“It was a shock collar,” you murmured out, snapping your gaze away from him. Waves of rage heaved off of you, but your eyes held a familiar sadness and pain that Bucky was accustomed to. “If I tried to zip without their authorization, it shocked me. There were inhibitors built into the walls of where I was kept, so if I tried to teleport anywhere out of them, I got shocked.” You turned your eyes back to Bucky, who had gone deathly silent. “So no, they didn’t give me military death training. They shocked me when I acted out, and of course I acted out a lot! I was an eight-year-old girl! So sorry, Bucky. Not all of us got... military-grade super soldier training. They used me when they needed me, and they hurt me if I said no. Are you gonna do the same?” 

Now it was Bucky’s turn to stutter. 

It made his thoughts roll back to the conversation Tony and he had the previous afternoon. The collar and cuffs he had been given, inhibitors that implied the possibility of your hostility. 

You didn’t deserve to be treated like a prisoner or a hostile. You were a good person, you had suffered through that enough. 

You both had. 

Bucky pulled away, his face returning to his indifferent expression. The infamous resting Bucky face. He was washed over with a twinge of regret, a churn in his stomach when he realized he had drudged up something he didn’t mean to. He inhaled, ready to try and amend his less than gentlemanly actions, but you spoke first.

“I’m tired,” you whispered, your eyes cast downward. Your anger had faded into exhaustion, your head tilted to the side. “I still have worksheets to grade.” 

“You should eat something before you go to bed,” Bucky said quickly, trying to stall you. He didn't know it at the time, but deep in his heart, didn’t want to go to bed with you still thinking he was a villain. But you smiled sadly, casting your eyes up to him. 

“I’m not all that hungry. Thank you, Barnes.” 

Bucky Barnes watched your back as you walked away. He watched you get smaller and smaller as you turned around the corridor and retreated to your room. When you were out of sight, Bucky finally felt it. The guilt, the regret. That sad look in your eye, that pain, he hated that look. He couldn’t explain why, but it made him feel like shit.

Bucky hated losing control. That’s why he became so quickly frustrated with you, because that’s what you took from him. 

He groaned deep in his throat, punching the doorframe to the conference room in frustration. 

He had to change his approach.   
  



	6. Welcome Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did y’all see the last episode of wandavision? I was sobbing man but i’m so excited for TFATWS

“You haven’t heard a word I’ve said, have you?” 

The question made you jump, your eyes quickly shooting up to Danny, who was sitting on your desk with a worried smile. You sighed, resting back in your swivel chair and tossing away your fork after several minutes of picking at your salad. 

“I’m so sorry, Dan. I just... I didn’t get a lot of sleep last night.” It wasn’t a complete lie. You had been tossing and turning anxiously for most of the night, your brain still wracking on your conversation with Bucky the night before. Danny seemed less than upset at your lack of attention, more so worried as he rested his palm on your hand. 

“Honey pie, don’t apologize. Is something on your mind? You’ve been real... distant lately. Plus you’re totally breaking out, and I know you’re breaking out cause when you’re stressed you eat straight grease. Talk to me.” 

Your eyes flickered up to your close friend. Danny’s dark brown eyes were filled with nothing but concern, his eyelashes fluttering as he squeezed your hand comfortingly. It made your stomach churn. 

Due to the recent developments, you were now aware that somebody in this school building was out to get you. That meant that you had to suspect everyone. It had turned you on edge at every turn, every teacher and faculty member a suspect. That included Danny. But as you stared at your extremely worried friend, who no doubt was fretting over your well-being, you sighed and leaned into him. 

“I, um... the pipes burst in my apartment. I can’t use the bathroom, so... I had to move in with a friend of mine. And he’s... _really_ getting on my nerves.” You chuckled at your own lie, hoping it would be convincing enough for Danny to bite on. He quirked a curious brow, but he seemed to believe you. 

“You could have just stayed with me, you know. What’s the deal with this friend?” 

You groaned, leaning over into your palm. “You know, I don’t even fuckin’ _know_ what his deal is! I try to be nice and respectful of his... space. his roommates are nice, but it’s just... _him_. It’s like one second he cares and the next he’s barraging me with all these questions and pushing my boundaries and I just can’t... sometimes it feels so invasive, and the rest of the time it just feels like I can’t do anything right,” you mumbled out, squeezing your eyes shut before letting out a sigh. “I just want this to be over, I think.” 

Danny tilted his head, his face breaking out into a gentle smile as he swept his hand through his dark hair. “Maybe he has a crush on you.” 

You snickered, rolling your eyes before fixing your thick cardigan. “I highly doubt that.” Danny chuckled with you after taking a long sip of his travel mug of coffee. 

“I mean, you know the old tale kids hear from their parents. ‘If a boy is mean to you, that means he likes you’?” 

“That’s just another excuse that men use to normalize abuse. And besides, in his... line of work, it’s not really something he’s really prone to come across. At least, that’s what I pick up.” 

“What is he, a prostitute?” Danny quipped. You snorted, shoving Danny’s shoulder playfully. He grinned down at you, satisfied. “I got you to smile.”

Your smile only widened, but you narrowed your eyes playfully at your friend. “Oh, hush. Kidding aside, I appreciate it.” 

Danny hopped off of your desk, stretching out with a groan. “Anytime, hon. And if this buddy of yours gets to be too much, just come crash with me ‘til you get your pipes-” Danny paused, his eyes settling on the door. He rolled his eyes as out of the corner of your eye, you saw a shuffle outside of your classroom window. 

“What is it?” you breathed, already panicked. 

Danny snorted, rolling his eyes before he turned back to you. “Callan was spying on you again.” He shook his head, picking up his travel mug with a grimace. “I swear, he shouldn’t be a teacher. Such a freak.” 

Callan Miller was, as Danny had described, a freak. Creeping on you and staring at you when you weren’t looking, he was the one that had gotten caught taking upskirt pictures of you. Out of your own embarrassment, you hadn’t reported him, but Danny was furious when he found out. Ever since then you’d tried to ignore him, but he always appeared out of the corner of your eye somewhere. 

Your eyebrows knit together in worry. The world just wasn’t giving you a break. 

——

You trudged up the compound steps, your headphones blaring loud music as you dragged your aching feet. You were looking forward to eating shitty food and hopefully taking a nap if God would even let you do that. 

When you passed by the lounge, you paused, your eyes widening at the sound of cooing. You peeked in from the doorway, and your face immediately spread into a smile. There, on the lounge room couch, sat Nat and Bruce, a laser pointer in Nat’s hand shifting from wall to wall. Sam and Steve watched, thoroughly entertained. Chasing the dot was your excited cat, hurriedly pawing at the dot before it would change places much to his confusion. 

Your giggle made the four of them glance up toward you. Your cat turned at the shift in attention, mewing loudly and padding over to you. You smiled as you set your bag down and knelt to the floor to pet the naughty tabby cat. 

“I see you guys have met Cheese.” 

Nat smiled endearingly, passing the laser pointer back to Bruce. “Sorry. He’s just so full of energy, he wanted to play so bad.” 

“Don’t apologize,” you responded, lifting Cheese and letting him purr into your shoulder. His favorite position, as it let him run his fluffy orange face against your neck while you smiled. “He was a present from my mom. She always talks about how lonely I look, no man in my life, what all moms talk about. We joke all the time about how Cheese is a dog trapped in a cat’s body.” 

Sam snickered, pulling himself off of the wall and approaching to scratch behind Cheese’s ears. “He’s a cute lil’ thing. Just like his momma,” he said with a wink.

You quirked a brow, hurriedly teleporting to the other side of the room to stand at Steve’s side. “He always like that?” you murmured to the super soldier. 

The room burst into laughter at the comedic use of your powers, coupled with Sam’s playful pout. 

Nat chuckled, glancing over at you with a wink. “I just know i’m gonna like you.” 

The room hummed in agreement, making you chuckle. “Oh, you guys are too sweet. Thank you for letting me stay with you, I know that all this is really sudden... it’s still super confusing for me, I just don’t want to get in you guys’ way.” 

Steve shook his head, patting your shoulder comfortingly. “What are you talkin’ about? We’re happy to have you here, especially if you’re gonna keep on humbling Sam.” 

You grinned up at Steve, your eyes twinkling as a warmth spread across your chest. You felt... at peace. A genuine joy at the prospect of being accepted. These people knew about your powers. And they didn’t fear you. They didn’t exploit you, either. They just... were cool. 

“Thank you,” you murmured, your cheeks still tinged with pink. 

“Actually, we were gonna order out tonight. You in the mood for anything in particular?” Natasha questioned, shifting to pick up her phone. 

You glanced between the four of them, suddenly feeling very small. “I don’t want to impose by eating with you all... I know that this is your space-“ 

“Oh, c’mon. You gotta get over all that,” Steve boomed with a playful tsk. “We invited you because we wanna get to know you better. Dinner with us, just talking it up and having a good time. You don’t have to, we just want to give you the option.” He leaned over, giving you a charming grin. “You’re wanted here, you know.” 

You froze under Steve’s gaze. They had only just invited you to the compound, and they were already reaching out to you. After hesitantly nodding, Steve patted you on the shoulder. 

“Attagirl! So, pad thai? Oh, maybe we could get Chinese delivered. Do they deliver out here, you think? Or I could cook us something.” 

“Do _not_ ask him to cook something,” Sam warned, deadly serious. “He will made a horrifying great depression mush meal.” 

“Aw c’mon, my cooking isn’t that bad!” 

Sam glanced over at you, his eyebrows arched in warning. “Are you gonna take the chance?” 

You giggled, scratching under Cheese’s chin. “I suppose not. I’m fine with anything, really. I’m gonna hole up in my room for a little bit, I’ve had a really stressful day.” 

After nodding goodbye, you padded out the room with a happy grin, setting Cheese down to let him pick whether to stay or go with you. As loyal as always, he tagged along behind you, his bell collar jingling in tow. 

When you got to your room and the door closed behind you, you let out a gentle sigh. You needed something to decompress, so you shuffled across the floor to one of your still unpacked bags, yanking out a couple skeins of yarn and a pair of needles. 

Your therapist called them “bad days,” days wherein you felt unmotivated, stuck in your own head with memories of the things that haunted you. You didn’t call them bad days. Everyone has bad days. You didn’t know what to call them, but they certainly weren’t easily described with a word as general as ‘bad.’

Knitting helped. Repetitive actions that ended up in a productive result made you feel calm, they helped you clear your head. Things like cooking, baking, rapid grading, anything that kept your mind focused. 

As you stitched row by row, you floated above your bed, eyes blank. Your brain was consumed by your past, almost overwhelming the way that your mind wouldn’t turn off. 

_“Are you scared yet?”_

_You trembled in your spot, your tiny frame shaking in fear. You didn’t want to hurt anybody. But your shaking hands were outstretched, blue energy crackling from them._

_You didn’t know who he was. You wanted to ask his name, his favorite color, ask him what he did to make your father so angry. You held him with your power, sobs leaving your mouth as he struggled against you. You could feel his energy. You could feel his breath, his heartbeat, how scared he was as he choked out his pleas._

_Your father reached a hand out to your shoulder, a smile on his lips. “Can you feel it? The energy of the tesseract dancing on you? You are connected to all of space, it’s power laying just beneath your fingertips.”_

_”Daddy, I wanna stop...” you whimpered meekly, lowering your hands. Your father narrowed his eyes, lifting your chin with his finger._

_”Now, now... the unrepentant must be punished. My darling, you’d really let this worm live?”_

_You huffed, shaking your head and ceasing your steady stream of energy. You let him to the floor, your cheeks puffing out indignantly. “No!” you shrieked, tears filling up your eyes. “I’m not like you...”_

_“Not like me?” Your father chuckled, watching the man squirm and groan in pain on the floor. The grin on his face only widened. “Oh my darling, you’re a spitting image.”_

A knock at your door made you gasp, your knitting halting as you drew back from the painful memory. You set your hand over your heart, letting yourself come down from the startle. 

“It’s open,” you called, making no move to cease floating or knitting. 

The door gently swung open, revealing the person you were least expecting: Bucky. A solid grey crew neck settled on his broad frame, his hair down and messy, yet framing his face charmingly.

Those stormy grey-blue eyes flickered around the room nervously. He was scared to meet your eye. He cleared his throat, hesitantly scanning up his gaze to look at you. 

“You should have asked for identification before you let me in. Locking your door is important.” 

You giggled, finishing your row as you spoke. “Why? You could have been a murderer?” 

Bucky grumbled, casting his eyes back down to the floor as he scratched his stubble. “You wouldn’t exactly be wrong...” he mumbled. 

You paused, glancing back down at him. “Well then, that makes two of us,” you whispered with a sad smile.

Bucky’s eyes widened when he snapped up to look at you. He had read your file. He knew what you had done, what you could do. But hearing it from your mouth, the horrors and atrocities that Hydra made you do, it made Bucky’s heart ache. He knew what you were feeling. The guilt that you carried. He knew because he carried it every day, with him, wherever he went. 

He let out a long sigh, nodding up at the work in your hands. “You, um... you knit?” A smile spread across your face. 

“Yeah. It helps.” You held up your project, a half-finished pair of warm-looking mittens. “We all cope in different ways, at least that’s what my therapist tried to tell me. Winter is coming so I, uh, I like to make mittens and scarves and hats for kids in my class who don’t have them.” 

Bucky’s lips twitched up into a small smile. “That’s sweet.” 

You shrugged, tucking your knees to your chest. “Like I said. It helps.”

The soldier sighed again, cramming his hands into his pockets. He saw it in you. The profound sadness, the guilt and anxiety masked by an almost motherly virtue and that biting wit. He nodded, finally turning up his head to look you in the eye. “Come down here.” 

You paused, wanting to deny the order just to annoy him, but when you met his eye, you realized his gaze was filled with nothing malicious. And if he was going to bark at you again, at least now you’d be prepared for it. 

You floated back down to the floor, extending your legs before gracefully coming to stand on the shaggy rug before Bucky. Your energy dispelled, and he swallowed thick in his throat. Something about how graceful you looked made him so terribly nervous. 

He cleared his throat before running a hand through his shaggy chestnut hair. “I wanted to apologize.” Your eyes widened at the words as your head snapped up in shock. You let him continue, still completely surprised. He shifted where he stood, bashfully picking at the paint on the doorframe. “That wasn’t fair of me. The way I acted yesterday, yelling at you and asking you about... stuff like that. That was extremely invasive. I should know firsthand, and I deeply apologize.” He lowered his head in apology, closing his eyes as you stared at him in shock. 

You hadn’t expected him to apologize at all. You had thought that he was going to brush it away, pretend like nothing had happened in guise of him simply doing his job. You felt your cheeks warm up at the sudden vulnerability and shook your head. 

“Sargeant Barnes, it’s fine. Really. I... I know you’ve been through worse things, I was being selfish and rude and-“ 

“Don't do that,” Bucky shot out hurriedly, making you flinch. He straightened up, instinctively holding tightly to your hands as he stared into your eyes. “Don't minimize your suffering just because other people have had it worse. Don't invalidate yourself like that. Because the things you went through were very real, I know what those Hydra bastards can do to a person. You were hurt by them. So was I. We have that in common. Don’t blame yourself, _please_...” he whispered, his steely blue eyes flickering between yours. 

You trembled in front of him, right where you stood. This sudden tenderness was so unexpected, so vulnerable as he held tight to your hands as if you’d float away. Staring into his eyes, you softened under his gaze and realized that maybe, just maybe... you’d been wrong. 

You let out a gentle sigh, tilting your head as you stared up at Bucky. “Thank you...” you whispered. 

He nodded firmly, seeming to realize just what he was doing as he straightened back up, dropping his hands and clearing his throat. “I’m not here to berate you or make this harder. But I need your help on this.” 

You followed his actions, nodding in turn with a small smile. “I’m your mission. I understand, Sergeant. I can’t compromise on everything, but I’ll help you where I can.”

Bucky snorted, leaning against the doorframe and allowing himself the tiniest of grins. “For god’s sake, Peep. It’s Bucky.” 

You rolled your eyes playfully, crossing your arms with a huff. “I really hate that you made that catch on.” 

The solider shrugged, glancing you up and down. “I think it’s cute. Now come on, food’s here. Steve told me you didn’t have a pick, so we settled on pizza.” 

Bucky turned around, beginning his march to the common area and breathing out in relief when he heard your footsteps padding behind him. 

Thank god he hadn’t turned back around, lest he see the flush of color passing across your cheeks. 

——


	7. New Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pizza, panic attacks, and a surprise guest star appears at the end.

“And you just teleported away?” 

“I mean- it was a really terrible date. He was a magician, so I thought I’d do a trick of my own! For my final act, I made myself disappear.” 

Laughter filled the room as the avengers heartily ate their dinner. You smiled, your chest feeling warm after making them laugh. It was almost natural the way you clicked in with them, especially Sam and Steve. Making friends was always hard for you, but these guys already knew your biggest secret. What else was there to lose? And without that wall, you could feel yourself becoming closer by the minute. 

Bruce leaned in, awe in his eyes as he heard the story. “You know- I specialize in Bio-Organics. I don’t think we’ve ever come across somebody like you... you wouldn’t mind if I studied you sometime, would you? I-I don’t wanna seem rude, we don’t-“ 

“Jesus, Bruce. Let the girl eat her damn pizza,” Tony cut in, making the room ripple with chuckles. Stark turned to you, an eyebrow quirked curiously. “But I’d like to join you. I’m curious about a couple things myself. How does the solider serum bind itself to the tesseract energy?”

You tilted your head in thought, letting the blue of your power emanate from your palms. “They sort of... work together, I suppose. The tesseract binds to my blood. It kept the soldier serum from killing me as a child. And the serum, in turn, speeds up my healing process, so I don’t get shredded when I zip. When I was little and teleported for the first time, I got hurt a lot. But... it’s like it got used to me. The tesseract, I mean.” 

Rhodes narrowed his eyes at you, crossing his arms over his chest. “Wait wait, hold on. You’re saying that the glowing blue space cube warmed up to you?” 

You blushed, letting the warmth of your power flow through you before dispelling it. “I can’t describe it. It’s like... It’s alive. I can talk to it, call on it...” You slowly let your eyes flutter closed. “I can see anything in the universe, but I can feel it, too... a connection to all of space... and it lives underneath my skin.” 

You opened your eyes and immediately shrunk back into yourself upon seeing everyone staring at you with varying degrees of confusion and curiosity. You chuckled nervously before sipping your soda. “I’m sorry, I bet I sound crazy.” 

“You don’t...” Wanda murmured, her little red head tilted as he stared at you. “I understand. I have the power of an infinity stone too. It’s like it’s another living thing, the energy of something else living in you. That same energy is what I feel in Vision.”

You sighed in relief, your hand over your heart. “Oh, thank god, I’m not bonkers.” 

Bucky, who had been awfully silent, smirked at you from across the table. “Well, that’s debatable.” 

The room once again lit up with laughter, and you playfully stuck your tongue out at Bucky. “You know, the kids keep asking me when they’re gonna see you again. It seemed you were a fan favorite, Mister White Wolf.” 

Sam nudged Bucky with a huge grin gracing his face. “See? I told you!” Bucky, however, grimaced. 

“I doubt it. That girl straight up asked me if I was a murderer. I mean, It’s not like she’s wrong... I just don’t think that I should be around kids.” 

You shook your head with a motherly grin. “That’s not what I saw.” Bucky’s eyes flickered up and he stared at you, but you didn’t deliver more information than that. 

The conversation in the common room continued well into the night, even after every last bite of pizza was gone. With every passing moment, you felt yourself warming up to the avengers. It was an odd space. You couldn’t feel like you could quite trust them yet, but it was comforting and warm. A divine connection that drove you all together despite the circumstances. 

You had hardly noticed when night had fallen until one by one, the Avengers had begun to turn in, grumbling about mission prep and paperwork. Even after they’d left, you had still felt the happy energy simmering in the common room. It lingered from the couches to the oddly shaped ottomans to the chessboard where minutes earlier Vision was playing against a frustrated Clint.

So, you had made the executive decision to haul your work out to the common room. It was better than holing up in your room for the rest of the night, anyways. After unloading a thick stack of worksheets and a couple of sheets of stickers, you began grading one by one, leaving personalized comments and happy rainbows, smiley faces and gold stars on each one. You let yourself smile as you read through the answers, seeing their personalities come through in each one more and more. It was another one of your favorite things. Children are so untouched by society that you got to see their personalities develop over time. They were only five, yet they were all products of their home lives and had access to things they’d discovered and come to love. And as they wrote about them, you couldn’t help but admire them more and more.

When you had finally gone through the last one, you let out a long sigh. After paper clipping the worksheets back together, you glanced outside the large floor to ceiling windows, immediately taken aback. You had stashed yourself away in your room for so long that you hardly had time to notice how beautiful it looked just outside the compound. Your own reflection obstructed the view however, as the glare from the lights behind you shone bright against the window panels.

You swiveled around, swallowing thickly as you tried to imitate the way the other Avengers had talked to the air to summon the building woman. 

“Uhm... what was her name... FRIDAY?”

You flinched at the immediate response. “Hello, miss. How may I help you?” 

You bit your lip in embarrassment. Something about her just felt so human. “Hi! Um, can you... turn the lights down? It’s pretty outside, I just wanted to see...” 

“Of course, miss.” 

You smiled as the lights immediately dimmed, darkness enveloping the room behind you as you turned toward the window. You gasped, your eyes twinkling in wonder. The window overlooked a grassy training area, right next to the launch and landing pad, most likely for people like Rhodey and Tony. Beyond that, however, looked to be a thicket of trees, a forest surrounding deep ponds of water. The wind rustled through the trees, swaying them like a late autumn dance. What took your breath away, however, was that this far outside of town, the moon and stars were so clear. The moon was new, it looked like none but a sliver of chalk drawn across the sky as the stars twinkled bright as could be in accent to the beauty of the dark sky.

“Hey.” 

You nearly jumped a foot in the air at the sudden greeting coming from your left. You yelped, clutching your rapidly beating heart as you swiveled your head to see, of course, the winter soldier.

You breathed out, playfully punching his shoulder. “Jesus Christ! Bucky, at this rate you’re going to give me a heart attack...” 

He hummed, nodding behind him towards the common room. “You shut the lights off. I thought you might have fallen asleep.” You slowly turned back to the window, feeling your face warm up. 

“I finished grading, so... I... wanted to see the view,” you whispered, the smile returning to your face. “It’s really pretty...”

Even as you spoke, Bucky’s eyes were glued to the side of your face. They flickered across each feature, taking in the sight of your smile, your eyes, the way that the moonlight glistened against the bridge of your nose and twinkled in your eye as you stared out at the silent night. 

“Yeah...” Bucky mumbled as he studied your features. “Pretty...”

You sighed, closing your eyes for a moment. “You definitely should come back to the school some time soon. The kids really liked you.”

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about.” He was more reminding himself as he said it, clearing his throat as he finally yanked his gaze away from you. “We haven’t touched base in a while. I wanted to pick your brain, see if there was any faculty members you suspected,” he mumbled, sweeping his lengthy hair away from his face. 

Your lips pressed themselves into a thin line as you turned over the thought rolling around in your mind. “Well... nobody has really stood out, that’s for sure. I mean- I guess that’s the point of them being a spy,” you murmured, making Bucky chuckle. You tilted your head, your eyes narrowed down at the skyline. “There is one person, though... and I might just be overreacting.”

Bucky crossed his arms over his chest. “Nothing is too small in a situation like this. You’re better overreacting than dead.” 

You wrapped your arms around yourself, chewing on your lip in thought. “It’s just- there’s this guy I work with. He’s the home economics teacher, and I think he’s just a weirdo, but... I always catch him staring at me, following me around, I even caught him taking pictures up my skirt once...” You chuckled, shaking your head. “I’m sure he’s just a creep, I don’t-“

“What’s his name?” Bucky wasted no time, his eyes narrowed curiously at the intake of information. 

“Callan Miller... if it’s him, I would be surprised though.” 

“What do you mean?”

“Well... he’s disorganized. Just kinda creepy and puppy-like. He doesn’t peg me as Hydra.” 

The soldier hummed deep in his chest, leaning against the window to face you. “Sometimes we get cases like this. Stalkers and erotomaniacs will do just about anything to get access to an object of fixation. He could be Hydra, it could be likely he’s just a puppet, too.” He said it simply, pretending not to notice how much you tensed up at the prospect. 

“That’s... freaky,” you chuckled nervously. Bucky bit his lip before glancing over at you. Damn it, he didn’t want to push you away again by freaking you out, but he couldn’t exactly beat around the bush either. He breathed out, staring down at you through fluttering brown eyelashes. 

“The girl...” 

You glanced up at him, finally breaking away from the window. “Hm?”

Bucky chewed on the inside of his cheek, trying to ignore the way that they were warming up. He slowly cast his eyes down to his vibranium arm. “The girl with the puffy hair. Missing her arm. I met her when I went to your classroom... what’s her name?” 

His curiosity made you break out into a grin. You didn’t understand it. He was always so... brooding. Insisting that children were scared of him, that he was a fearsome monster. Yet here he was, striving to know more. You stared up at him, the happy twinkle returning to your eye. 

“Aischa. She lost it due to infection in the womb. She never lets it slow her down, though. She’s such a bright girl, too. She can read at a sixth-grade level already!” You excitedly told Bucky, squeezing your palms together. 

Bucky slowly let himself smile. “That’s incredible.” 

You slowly set your hand down on his arm, the cool metal tensing up underneath your touch as you stared up at him. “She really looks up to you, you know.” He grimaced and glanced away. 

“She really shouldn’t. Not a girl as sweet as that.”

How frustrating could one man be? Huffing, you tilted your head to be allowed back into his line of sight. “Stop that. Why is it so hard for you to believe that people like you?” 

He chuckled dryly. “Have you always been an optimist or does it just come with being a kindergarten teacher?”

“No,” you tutted, slowly tracing your hand along one of the gold valleys of his arm. “It comes with the love I have for people.” 

Those piercing blue eyes snapped up to meet yours. They held questions in them, curiosity that couldn’t be tamed. His lips parted but nothing came out. 

You yawned, pulling away and snuggling into your cardigan. “I’m sleepy, I think I’ll turn in now. Thank you, Bucky.”

The soldier cleared his throat, nodding curtly as he scratched his scraggly haired chin. “Ask FRIDAY if you need anything.” 

As you walked back into your room, Bucky was once again left to his thoughts. Layers of you peeled back like matryoshka dolls. It was odd how often it happened. The more you were in his presence, the more he learned, and the more he was inclined to protect you. 

As Bucky padded back to his room, he checked his phone. The GPS bracelet indicated you were still in your room, making him sigh in relief. He would get an alert if it was taken off, but he still liked to make sure you didn’t teleport anywhere. He did his rounds, checked his gun locker, checked his nightstand and bed knives before he was able to relax. As he pulled his shirt off over his head, he spoke out into the room. 

“FRIDAY?”

“Yes, Sergeant Barnes?”

“I need you to run a name for me.”

“What’s the name, sir?”

“Callan Miller, start by going through New York school district and department of education files. If anything is sealed, unseal it.” 

“Yes, sir.” 

Bucky paused, his eyes drifting over his gun locker. He bit his tongue, glancing back down at his phone. 

“FRIDAY?”

“She’s asleep, Sergeant Barnes.”

He let out a long sigh. “Thank you.”

——

The days passed. And as you got closer to the team, you found yourself not being able to turn down Banner’s eager plea to study you in his lab. 

You really hadn’t wanted to. But he and Tony egged you on, wanting to learn more about your ever mysterious powers. 

You sat upon Bruce’s desk, warily eyeing his lab. It was decked out with whites and silvers, full of expensive-looking equipment that you couldn’t name if you tried. It put you at ease a little. It didn’t feel like the Hydra labs. Those were rustic. Dark and bleak with strange men leering over you and prodding you with needles and serums. Everything looked so much bigger, but that was because you were so small. This lab felt clean and had a warm air, faint scents of lemon and ammonia lingered in it. And as for the scientists, you didn’t exactly feel threatened. The only other two people in the room were an incredibly anxious biologist and a billionaire genius with too much grease in his hair.

You giggled, eyeing the wires and tubes you were hooked up to. “So, what exactly are y’all looking for? I promise I’m sober.”

Bruce chuckled, fixing his glasses as he scanned through his machines. “Just looking for any anomalies that may be occurring in your body. Ways the Tesseract may be acting in response to your body.” He lifted up a clipboard, hefty with papers and clicked a pen. “Mind if I ask you a few questions?”

You breathed out, trying to settle your nerves as you smiled. “Shoot.” 

“How fast would you say your metabolism is?” 

“Regular... I guess.” He jotted that down.

“How has the Hydra soldier serum affected your body?”

You thought about the question before hesitantly answering. “They gave it to me when I was little. All I felt was the burn... but it made my senses get dialed up to ten. It was Hydra’s crude imitation, but it did what they were trying to do. My body didn’t undergo any changes like Steve Rogers, I don’t know why... but I can run pretty fast, my wounds close up quick, and I throw a mean right hook.” Bruce nodded, jotting down all your answers. 

Tony tapped on a holographic screen, humming in thought. “Alright, Peep. We’re just gonna run a scan on you, get some vitals and body contents, that okay?” He glanced at you, and nodded in return. “FRIDAY, run a scan on her, will you?” 

“Are we looking for anything in specific, Mister Stark?” 

“Nah, just start with everything and we’ll narrow down from there.” 

As soon as he’d said it, you gasped as a blue halo of a hologram started at your feet and ran through your body. You shivered as you felt the scan, glancing over at a little holographic version of yourself popped up on Bruce’s screen at the same time. 

You watched as they stared at the screen, mumbling to one another in geeky science talk. They had varying degrees of awe on their face as they went through the information together. 

“This is incredible...” Bruce whispered.

“What are we lookin’ at?” Tony murmured to him. Bruce glanced up at you, his eyes widening as he pulled off his glasses.

“Now I understand.” 

“Understand what?” 

“Why she’s small for a super soldier, like you said.” 

“Hey, I’m right here, you know...” you tutted as the pair of scientists drew closer. 

Bruce chuckled, glancing up at the wires that connected you to their machines. “It’s incredible. The Tesseract isn’t just dormant energy... It’s literally _living_ inside her.” Bruce pointed at the screen, making Tony’s eyebrows raise in understanding.

“That’s why she’s small for a soldier.” 

“The space stone is literally binding her body together. It’s not just energy, It’s like a symbiote!” 

“You're not saying-“ 

“I told you...” you murmured, cutting the chatter between the two of them. You let out a mischievous giggle as you started to float above the desk. “I don’t command it. It’s alive, and it lives inside me.”

“Wait, hold on,” Tony interrupted, crossing his arms over his graphic tee. “You don’t _command_ it? Then what are you doing right now?” 

The blue glow seeped from your fingers, making you smile. “We talk to each other.” 

Tony quirked a brow, studying the strange glow coming from you as Bruce grinned from ear to ear. 

“This is amazing! I mean- you have to let me run blood tests. If it’s a direct link to the serum in your bloodstream, I’d have to study it.” As Bruce began pulling needles from a desk, you paused, shrinking into yourself and shying away. 

“I... um... I don’t really like needles...” 

“It’ll be okay, It’s just a blood draw. Nothing major,” Bruce affirmed as he rolled his equipment over to you. You glanced at the empty syringes on the table, and you swallowed thickly. Just the sight made your heartbeat pick up. 

“I really don’t-“

“Please? This could be major for my research.” Bruce held up one of the syringes, staring up at you with what could only be described as puppy-dog eyes. 

You hugged yourself and pressed your knees together nervously. You could feel your heartbeat pick up, your pulse in your ears. If you had looked at your wrist, you would have seen that the little light on the bracelet that Bucky gave you had changed from blue to a blinking red. 

You just wanted to make him happy. So, hesitantly, you offered your arm, making Bruce silently cheer. 

He lifted one of the syringes, a grin on his lips. “This won’t hurt a bit, okay?” 

That’s when your heart stopped. Because immediately, in your mind, you were back in that dingy lab, strapped to a table with your father looming over you. 

You squeezed your eyes shut, and as soon as the syringe had entered your arm, you let out a gasp. 

You felt the familiar hug, the warmth of the Tesseract enveloping you with its blue hue. 

Everything was in slow motion. 

You saw Bruce being shot back by a wave of your own power. He hit the wall furthest from you, making Tony’s eyes go wide as he watched ribbons of the blue glow circle you in protection. 

Then you’d heard it.

Your name. Your _real_ name. And when you whirled toward the sound, you saw him. 

The last thing you saw was him. Bucky, with eyes wide from the doorway, breaking into a dash toward you. He must have seen your heart rate spike from the bracelet. He would have been alerted, that much you knew. But he was too late. 

You vanished into thin air, your body swept away, leaving nothing behind but the severed wires and the discarded syringe that had just barely pierced your skin. 

You squeezed your eyes shut again, feeling the familiar ricochet of teleportation, except this time, it felt like it stretched you way thinner. Wherever it was taking you, it was zapping a lot of your energy.

When you felt a floor beneath you again, you didn’t dare open your eyes. You slowly let your hand down, feeling the smoothness of the floor beneath you. It certainly felt expensive.

Hesitantly, you blinked your eyes open, and it took you a moment to realize you’d been crying. You didn’t mean to zip. You just remembered the panic, the fear creeping into your body. The familiarity of where you were as a child, that bleak and dingy lab. Your breath came out shaky as you observed your surroundings. Your heartbeat picked up when you saw that they weren’t familiar.

You started with that. One of the two things you knew. One, you didn’t zip on purpose, meaning your powers did it for you. And two, wherever they _had_ taken you, you hadn’t been here before. 

Everything was... gold. It shimmered and shone with a regal energy that you’d never felt before in your life. It was some kind of dome, with intricate circular carvings along the walls. You ran your hand across them, curious. The entire room was made from patterned gold circles, the very design looking foreign. It was certainly unlike room you’d been in before. 

“Hello, there.” 

You gasped at the voice behind you, making you whip around in shock. You had to crane your neck up to look at whoever was addressing you. Immediately upon looking, your cheeks heated up. He was incredibly handsome. _Inhumanly_ handsome. 

He stood tall, shoulders broad and imperial, a kind of intricate sword in his hands. A glimmering golden helmet rested atop his head, framing his sharp mocha-brown features. In fact, he was decked out in armor, a kind that you’d never seen the likes of in your life. It was otherworldly, golden and glimmering and gorgeous in all senses of the words. 

The most attention was called to his eyes. They, like his armor, were a glimmering gold. They looked beyond you, restful and eased as if he was looking at many things at once. 

That is, until he cast his gaze down to you. A small pleasant smile graced his handsome features. “I have been expecting you.” 

You stared into his eyes, and almost unconsciously, yours began to glow their soft sapphire blue. You took small steps toward him, until you had begun to float. Your power lifted you to meet his eye, making you tilt your head. Unspoken words passed between your eyes. Gold and blue, dancing in diplomatic conversation, until you finally spoke, almost a whisper. 

“You’re like me...” 

He chuckled, deep in his chest before nodding. “I am Heimdall, keeper of the realms. And I am most delighted to make your acquaintance, my lady.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot is doing squats, my dudes. Yeah that’s right. It has thickened.


	8. How the Sheep Lost Little Bo Peep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anxious Bucky ft. therapy session with Heimdall

“What the _fuck_ did you guys do?!”

Upon hearing the commotion, the rest of the Avengers scrambled into the lab, gasping when they saw Bucky Barnes, absolutely fuming. His stance was rigid, waves of anger practically washing off of him with Banner’s shirt balled up in his fist, lifting him a foot off of the floor. 

“Buck!” Steve was quick to damage control, grabbing the vibranium arm that held Bruce in a hostile grasp. “Let him down!” 

Bucky snarled, but dropped Bruce, letting him fall back onto the linoleum floor with a resounding ‘oof.’ The grimace remained on his face as he repeated his question. “What the fuck did you two do?! Where’s is she?!”

“Buck, I need you to calm down a bit...” Steve tried to soothe. 

Tony rushed to Bruce’s side, helping him stand. “I knew there was a chance that Little Bo Peep would try to flee the herd.”

”It’s incredible...” Bruce whispered, his eyes wide as he scrambled for his clipboard. His curly hair was ruffled from Bucky’s rough handling of him, but he smoothed out his button down shirt with one hand as he paced. “I hypothesized something like this would happen! Her body is one with the Tesseract, as soon as I put the needle in, it rushed to protect her! It’s a trauma response!”

“You put needles in her?!” Bucky roared, practically puffing up with anger. “Knowing full well what those bastards put her through, and you wanted to poke and prod at her?!”

“It was just a blood draw, Barnes,” Tony tried to amend, but Bucky was far beyond reason. “I mean- she _did_ say she didn’t like needles, but I think I speak for both Bruce and I that we wanted to see what would happen.” 

Bruce fumbled through his clipboard, pulling himself away from Tony’s grasp as he excitedly jotted down more notes. He lifted the board, looking Tony’s way excitedly. “Her traumatic experiences made her spiral into an episode, and her emotional distress made her teleport! She didn’t mean to, I don’t even think she was aware, but the Tesseract was protecting her! It’s like dissociation in people with PTSD, except her trauma response reacted with her powers! This is so-“

_**BANG!** _

A series of flinches shook through the Avengers, followed by looks of disbelief. Bucky’s gun, still smoking, had aimed itself directly toward Bruce’s clipboard and shot. The bullet hole directly in the center of the thick wooden clipboard and the stack of papers that laid on it was evidence that it had shot all the way through. Yet Bucky’s eyes never broke away from Bruce. 

Bruce yelped and dropped the smoking clipboard, the hefty notes scattering when they made contact with the floor. He didn’t know what could be salvaged, seeing as there was a bullet hole through every page. He looked about ready to piss himself as Bucky stalked toward him. This was the portrait of a man who was absolutely, incredibly, and incandescently pissed off. 

The soldier bared his teeth, those light blue eyes narrowed down at the incredibly terrified doctor as he raised his gun. “Next one is gonna go _right between your eyes_.” 

“ _Bucky_!” Steve barked, stepping between Banner and his trusted friend. He set his hand on Bucky’s gun, staring into his eyes in an attempt to get him to come down. “I know you’re mad, I am too. But lashing out isn’t gonna bring her back. Take a deep breath, and check her GPS bracelet. I’m sure she’ll come back.” 

Bucky bit down on his tongue, glaring Bruce down before he pulled out his phone and opened up the bracelet tracking app so helpfully designed by Tony. First, he allowed himself a small sigh of relief. Your vitals had returned back to normal, so you had either calmed down or fallen asleep. Either way, you were alive. That was a small victory. 

But once Bucky swiped to the location tracking tab, his breath hitched in his throat at the words on the screen. 

‘ _Signal not detected.’_

“Fuck...” Bucky swore, shaking his head. “It makes no sense! It says it can’t pick up her signal... I can read her vitals just fine, she hasn’t taken the bracelet off... but the signal isn’t detectable.”

”What?” Tony strode over to peer over Bucky’s shoulder, his eyebrows knit together in confusion. “That makes no sense. I programmed that thing to be able to detect her anywhere on earth.” 

“Well _clearly_ it isn’t working,” Bucky hissed, glaring daggers at Tony as he shoved his phone back into his pocket. “How could you?! You know what she went through, and you decide it’s just a fucking _fantastic_ idea to put her back there.”

Tony raised his arms defensively, but he was less than scared of Bucky. “Not me. It was Bruce.” 

“Tony!” Bruce hissed, on the verge of pissing his pants when Bucky whirled back to him. “I-I just wanted to answer some questions! I was just trying to further my research, and-“

“It was the both of you! You said it yourself, you ‘wanted to see what would happen’. And you thought a traumatized kindergarten teacher was the perfect guinea pig?! You toyed with that fragile girl’s mental state because you knew to a certain degree what the response was going to be. You know why I ran down here, Banner? Her bracelet alerted me when her heart rate spiked so high that _I thought she was dying_.”

“I didn’t-“

“She was scared _out of her fucking mind_ , Banner! Do your little experiments matter that much?!” 

A swift right hook to Bucky’s jaw shut him up. The winter soldier stumbled back, mostly from the shock. His eyes blew wide as he looked angrily toward whoever threw the punch. Steve stood stern, shoulders broad in his fighting stance. “Buck, I’m sorry, but I’m not gonna warn you again. You need to calm down, immediately.” 

For some reason, it took that punch to the jaw to set Bucky straight. The taste of blood in his mouth grounded him, the fresh sting of a newly forming bruise on his cheek drawing him back to his surroundings. He let out a long breath, squeezing his eyes shut for several seconds. Leaning against Banner’s lab desk, he slowly nodded.

“You’re right... I’m... sorry,” he mumbled. 

It was Sam’s turn to step forward, offering Bucky a comforting pat on the shoulder. “Okay, let’s start with what we know. We know that she’s alive, and she’s calm, so she’s not in any immediate danger. That’s what matters, let’s focus on that.” 

Bucky lifted his eyes up to look at his trusted comrade. Sam’s eyes widened, completely taken aback by Bucky’s expression. There was rage on it, of course. But... there was... worry. Anxiety. He was scared, something Sam had rarely seen on his face, because it wasn’t something that Bucky frequently exuded. Bucky wasn’t scared of threats. Bucky was used to _being_ the threat. 

Bucky shoved his hands into the pockets of his grey drawstring hoodie, slowly nodding and swallowing thickly. “I don’t like this... there’s too many variables, too many unknowns...” he hissed before shutting his eyes. 

He felt control slipping. And Bucky Barnes _didn’t_ lose control. 

——

“What... is this place?” you whispered tentatively. Your eyes once again grazed over the intricate golden dome that held you. 

The man who had introduced himself as Heimdall puffed out his chest. “This, my lady, is Asgard. Realm of the Gods.” 

Your eyes widened in shock as you stumbled back. “ _Asgard_? No, wait... I-I didn’t mean to zip here, I’ve never even been here before... I’ve never been able to zip somewhere I haven’t seen before...”

“...’Zip’?”

“Oh, sorry. That’s... what I call teleporting. It’s kind of like... an onomatopoeia situation, I guess. It sounds cooler.” 

Heimdall chuckled. “I see... regardless, you have seen this place before. For we have met, simply in your dreams.”

You blushed stared up at the handsome keeper, chewing on your lower lip. “Yeah, I bet... But... Why am I here?” 

“The Tesseract has brought you here for a reason, my lady. Which reason, I am afraid I do not know.” 

You let out a small giggle, tilting your head and brushing off your corduroy pants. “Well, I guess that makes two of us.”

You glanced toward the opening of the dome, where light had been pouring in. Your eyes blew wide as saucers at the sight. The portrait that you saw... was gorgeous. A luminescent rainbow bridge stretched out for miles toward a city that seemed to glow. Sweeping mountains framed the beautiful sight of a palace that looked like it was forged of gold and silver. The sky bled gorgeous purples and blues and oranges, highlighted by moons you didn’t recognize.

“This is Asgard...?”

“Yes, my lady.” 

You felt your heart squeeze. “It’s absolutely gorgeous...”

Heimdall looked on, his golden eyes setting themselves back on the horizon. “I am afraid that I am bound to my duty. As soon as you leave here, I must tell the king. It’s likely that he will request an audience with you.” 

You swallowed thickly, fussing with your hands. “I-I don’t think i’m really prepared for a meeting with a king...” 

“Is that so, my lady?” 

“I’m not particularly dressed for it.” 

“He will send his sons for you. The Allfather sees over all magickal beings in the nine. Since you have been influenced by an infinity stone, he will want to meet you.”

“I-I mean... I was experimented on, I wouldn’t exactly call that ‘influenced’...”

Heimdall craned his neck down to meet your eyes once again. “Oh, my lady. You misunderstand. The Tesseract would not have taken inhabitance in your body if it hadn’t deemed you suited to it.” 

You tilted your head in confusion. “You lost me...” Heimdall took a hand off of his greatsword, peeling away to point a finger to your chest as he locked eyes with you. 

“An infinity stone is not dormant. It is its own living being. And the space stone has chosen you, because it sees you for who you are: a being pure of heart.” 

“Pure of heart?”

“But of course.”

“But... that’s the kind of thing you hear in fairy tales!” 

“Oh, but it is more than true.” 

Your eyes went wide at the sudden wave of information. Your eyes trailed from Heimdall’s hand back to those piercing golden irises of his. You shook your head, chuckling nervously. “I’m less than pure... I’m just a teacher. I-I mean, I knew that it was alive, somehow, but-“

“It speaks to you.” Heimdall offered a warm smile that did much to ease your nerves. “Does it not?”

“I mean, yes, but...” you trailed off. 

“All infinity stones live. Your friend, the witch. She harbors the power of one as well. All of life revolves around the stones.” 

Your eyes fell upon the rainbow bridge once more. “It... chose me?”

“Is that so hard to believe?” 

“To me, yeah...” You cast your eyes down to the intricate floor. “I’m not special like Wanda or Vision... I just had a bad thing happen to me as a child.” 

Heimdall’s smile fell sad. “Oh, yes, the past can hurt. Yet your heart is still pure. The Tesseract speaks to you, lets you call on its power... it is not your struggles that made your heart kind. It is your kindness that aids in you in your struggles.” 

You cast your gaze down, remembering what it was that brought you here. It was feeling like you were in that place, feeling that tightness in your chest. That bleakness, loneliness, emptiness, it filled you and put you back there. 

“Heimdall... you see everything, right?”

“Of course, my lady.”

You bit the inside of your cheek, casting your eyes down. “So you saw what was happening to me?” Heimdall breathed out a sigh before nodding silently. You smiled sadly in reply. “I bet you see a lot of horrible stuff every day.” 

Heimdall softened his gaze and broad posture, leaning down to meet your height. “My lady, I am bound to see the horrors of every culture each day, not just humans.”

“And do you ever think of... stepping in?”

He smiled down at you, that familiar blue glow dancing on your eyes. It’s as if the Tesseract called to him. “Oh, my lady. Do I think of it? Of course I do. But I am bound not to.” 

You nodded, letting yourself float once again. You crossed your legs mid-air, letting out a soft sigh. “It’s often that I wonder... if it was my fault.” 

“It could never be,” Heimdall replied firmly. You smiled as you floated, your eyes drifting around the room. 

“That’s what I try to tell myself. My father, while he was a scientist, was a religious man. Always talked of the unrepentant, how they must face penitence for their crimes... he claimed my using my powers would aid him to serve in the name of God.” 

“Ah, yes... the unrepentant. Many men claim they serve in the name of their God. They focus on the unrepentant, but I wonder, what of the faithful?” 

You chuckled under your breath, tilting your head back. “I lost faith a long time ago.”

“And did it get better, my lady?” 

“No...” you murmured. “But it got easier.” 

Heimdall let out a low chuckle. “Blessed be.” 

A smile met your lips again. “I’m sorry to have dumped all this on you. You’ve done great to answer a lot of my questions, and I really appreciate it.”

“Oh, you have the answers, my lady. It will take longer to unlock all of them, but I am glad to be of service.” 

You let out a small laugh, pinching the bridge of your nose. “It’s been such a weird day! I’m in a space kingdom when I was just in Banner’s lab, then I think I had a panic attack, then Bucky was-“ you gasped, your eyes going wide as you remembered your caretaker. “Bucky!”

“The soldier,” Heimdall hummed. “He worries.”

You bit your lip, pressing your fingers to your temples and trying to focus your energy to your eyes. They lit up that familiar blue as you silently asked for what you wanted to see. 

Your heart melted when your sight shifted. Bucky paced around anxiously, scolding Banner and Tony in the compound’s lounge room. He checked his phone every two seconds, trying to see if the signal would come back online. 

You sighed, blinking the sight away. It was harder than usual, as your eyelids had grown heavy. “Damn it... I must have used a lot of energy to get here... I mean, it is another realm, I guess...”

Heimdall regained his broad posture. “I can send you back through the bifrost, if you wish, my lady.” 

You giggled, setting your hand on Heimdall’s comfortingly. “There’s no need to be so formal. But I’m pretty sure I can get back on my own. Thank you so much, Mister Heimdall.” 

A smile had once again graced his features. “We will meet again soon. Still, should you ever need me...” he lifted a hand and reached it up to your face, gingerly tracing your cheek and tracing underneath your eyes, still bright with their sapphire glow. “You know how to reach me.” 

You blushed underneath his touch, letting out a nervous giggle. “You’re... handsome...” 

Heimdall’s chuckle came from deep in his chest. “Now go. Your soldier awaits you.”

You nodded dutifully, pulling away and breathing in deep. As the familiar swirl of energy surrounded you and hugged you, you shut your eyes. “Here goes nothing...”

——

“I’m sure she’s fine, Buck,” Sam murmured, leaning back on the couch next to Steve. 

Bucky waved him off, running his hand through his hair with a huff. “How can you relax at a time like this?! If she’s gone for good, it’s my ass Fury’s gonna want!” 

“Well, maybe this wouldn’t have happened if you would have collared her.” Tony spoke without hesitation, staring out the compound window calmly even as the entire room whirled around toward him incredulously. 

Bucky snarled, punching the wall and putting his hand through with a vigorous display of force. “Fucking God, Tony! I am not putting a collar on that poor girl! All of this happened because of you and Banner’s negligence, I don’t wanna hear jack shit from either of you.” His brooklin accent rang out thick, quieting the room and blanketing it in stunned silence. 

Natasha sauntered over to the couch, shaking her head. “Maybe... Tony has a point. I mean- it could be that she found a chance to escape and took it.” 

“No, couldn’t be...” Bruce mumbled. “That bracelet was made to be able to get a ping anywhere. To be anywhere outside of its reach... she has to be-“

Bruce’s words trailed off when a soft blue halo of light began to swirl throughout the room. It slowly took form, the cerulean sea of light reflecting off of the Avengers’ shocked faces as it slowly took form in the center of the room. Oddly enough, it took form in front of Bucky. The soldier’s eyes widened in utter shock as he slowly began to be able to make out the outline of your pants and button-up blouse through the ribbons of blue energy. 

Once the light cleared, there you stood, slowly opening your eyes to asses your surroundings and allowing yourself a small sigh of relief upon seeing the familiar sights of the compound. 

“Peep...?” Bucky tentatively murmured, his eyes still wide at the display of your powers upon your return. 

You turned your head up to meet his eye. For a moment, you thought you were hallucinating. It had to be your drowsiness, otherwise you could have been certain that his face showed genuine worry. He didn’t have that resting bitch face that always settled on his features. The sharp contours of his face were contorted in anxiety. His thick eyebrows were drawn together, his square stubbled jaw set and hard. His thick brown hair was strewn across his face, as if he’d been running back and forth.

When he slowly reached out to you, you giggled, swaying back and forth. “What’s wrong, Bucky? I make you worry or somethin’?” 

He gasped as you fell forward, your eyes fluttering shut as you made way for the floor. His instincts didn’t fail him one bit when he hurriedly made a dive for you, kneeling and scooping you up in his arms right before you’d hit the linoleum tiles. He cradled you in his strong arms, reaching his right hand to your neck and using two fingers to feel your pulse. He let out a sigh of relief, you had simply fallen unconscious. He assessed your face for any signs of injury, but had to stop himself when he realized he had just been staring at your peacefully sleeping face as it snuggled deeper into his sweatshirt sleeve. 

It frustrated him. The way you made him lose control. You were a wild card in a deck of aces, an unknown variable in an equation that he had wracked his brain trying to solve. What frustrated him more than that was that just looking at your face gave him this weird feeling in his stomach. He hated how he couldn’t hate you, which made him want to hate you more. But right now, staring at your face, restful thoughts behind your eyes, your nose that twitched ever so often that reminded Bucky of field bunnies, made him incredibly confused. He couldn’t even control his emotions around you. And confusion with Bucky led to where every unknown leads: anger. 

He huffed, ignoring the warming of his cheeks in turn for slinging you over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “Stupid girl.” 

“She’s dreaming...” Wanda whispered, a soft smile on her face as she read you. “I’m so happy she came back to us safely.” 

“Relatively speaking,” Rhodey mumbled, eyeing the way Bucky had carelessly slung you over his shoulder. “Where do you think she went?”

Bucky grumbled under his breath, adjusting you on his shoulder when you let out a small whimper. “I’ll ask her when she wakes up. I’m gonna put her down in her room. I better not see any of you prodding at her. _Especially_ not the two of you,” Bucky snarled, glaring toward Tony and Bruce.

Natasha raised her eyebrow in thought as they all watched Bucky stride away toward your room, grumbling about what a nuisance you were. “He’s certainly... protective of her.” 

“I mean, she was assigned to him by Fury. I’d worry about losing cargo too if it meant coming face to face with him,” Bruce replied, sliding up next to Nat and shivering. The redhead chuckled in response.

“You can turn into a giant green monster and you’re worried about Fury?” 

“I’m just saying, I get why Barnes wouldn’t want her to get banged up.” 

“You seriously buy that?” The widow murmured, a small smirk on her ruby red lips.

Banner chuckled, shaking his head. “You can’t be serious.” 

“I dunno, Barnes has been outta the game for seventy years.”

“I thought you said love was for children.”

“I’m not saying it’s love. I’m saying he might be horny.” 

“I don’t wanna listen to this conversation,” Clint mumbled, pulling out his phone and nodding toward the door. “All I know is they argue like school kids. It doesn’t matter though, we have a mission. Get Barnes.” 

——


	9. Bundle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Bucky live in your memories differently. Fluff. So much fluff.

It was early morning on the way back. The Quinjet was quiet, rocking with the ever so often turbulence, but most of the passengers were silent. It was still dark outside, the sun hadn’t yet made her debut for the day, and Bucky sighed as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

His mission suit was tactical. It fit on his body well enough that he wasn’t slowed down or constantly fussing with it, as all mission suits should be. It was one of the less elaborate ones, a simple and thick leather coat with the left sleeve torn off to showcase his glistening metal arm. A buckle ran across the front, securing a harness to his back where his AR-15 was strapped safely and snugly, albeit missing significant amount of ammo from its magazine. Complete with a utility belt that contained extra weapons and tactical pants and heavy black boots, his mission gear was loyal, but scuffed from the tussle he’d faced during the mission. 

It was simple, really. For them, at least, as it only required a small team of Steve, Sam, Clint, Tony, and himself. A terrorist organization in eastern Germany had begun to rise, and they had successfully decentralized it before morning light had even broken. 

Bucky let his eyes flutter shut, his over-analysis once again taking over his system. He laid his head back against the steel wall of the Quinjet, grimacing when he felt the sharp sting from the same place a hostile had been not so friendly as to pistol-whip him with their snub nose. 

“Damn head wounds...” he mumbled to himself. Fresh cuts and bruises had marked up his face, ones he would let heal on their own time once he had returned to the compound. As much as Steve had insisted he see a medic, he was used to letting wounds close up on his own. 

His thoughts rolled back to his days in Hydra. The memories were sporadic, spliced through decades from the cryostasis and the mind control.

He remembers aching. That’s always the first thing that he remembers. The itch of the arm that was no longer there, that he later learned his brain would still send nerves to, in attempts to puppet the phantom limb. They would get their chance when his arm was replaced with the silver monstrous fist that Hydra had saddled him with. 

That was the funny thing about memories. It was always the bad ones that were pictured in the greatest detail. Happy things committed themselves to memory like watercolor, vague outlines and bleeding wisps of lights and shades that he felt more than saw. But the bad ones, those were etched with the most razor sharp of tools into his memory. Those were the ones he dreamt of, the ones he could feel wreak havoc across his body. 

Bucky Barnes remembers pain. Before and after Hydra. He remembers the searing burn of the drugs they pumped into him each day. He remembers the hallucinations, the feeling of his body writhing on the cold floor of the cell, the brick resting against his cheek, and the blood he tasted in his mouth from bashing his own face against it. He remembers when he got back, the time he spent clutching his head and screaming into the dead void of night as his head split with the memories he tried to recover. He remembers the numbness of the morning after nightmares had ripped all the screams from his throat that he could muster. 

Those were the memories he harbored, the fear and sadness triggering something deep in his consciousness that he had spent most of his recovery trying to shake.

He breathed deep, inhaling the crisp high-altitude air of the Quinjet before breathing out. When things got stressful, he tried to think about the last peaceful time in his life: Wakanda. Until Steve came to get him, it was perfect.

He lived modestly in Wakanda, in a small hut, drinking tea and eating stews by a fire at night, and chopping wood while looking after the village children and talking to the elders during the day. 

His favorite part, however, was raising the goats. They were high-energy, sometimes they could be hostile, but Bucky loved it. He loved how cuddly they could be, how calming it was to feed and care for them. It was way better that the biggest threat to him was an antsy goat biting his hand. The memory was his happy place. A remote and peaceful scene away from fights and Hydra while he was counseled by the village elders. No fights. No wars. No weapons. Caring for goats was therapeutic. They didn’t think of him as a threat. They bleated gleefully as soon as he woke up. They nuzzled into his hands when he pet them. They cared little of his sins. 

_“Why is it so hard for you to believe that people like you?”_

Bucky’s eyes fluttered open. He tilted his head forward, grimacing as he was suddenly pulled from his controlled thought. Oddly enough, when his thoughts had rolled to the memory that replaced it, he felt just as peaceful. 

The contours of your face, highlighted by the new moon. The look of awe on you as you stared out at the compound. The way you looked, the way you laid his hand on his arm, unafraid and without hesitation. You saw no threat in him, you saw no danger in approaching him. Bucky had no idea why it made his stomach jump. So he replayed the memory. Over and over, to the same result. He would get the same little twinge in his gut when he thought of the moon reflected in your eyes as you stared up at him.

He hissed, shaking his head and biting on his tongue. It confused him. Another variable, another unknown. And it made him angry.

Sam quirked a brow from across the aisle. “Somethin’ wrong, Buck?”

Bucky cringed, running his hand through his hair before trying to ignore that his fingertips quickly became sticky with blood. “My head hurts.”

When they returned to the compound, it was quiet. It was unspoken the way that they all shuffled into the common room to get some coffee from the kitchenette and huddle around the granite table to make small talk after the mission. 

As soon as Bucky set foot in the room, the familiar mew of Cheese the cat met his tired ears. The playful tabby made a mad dash to the Avengers, meowing loudly and begging for attention. 

It made Bucky crack a small smile as he knelt down to the floor, affectionately scratching Cheese who purred and nuzzled into his warm hand. 

“I thought you hated cats, Buck,” Steve jabbed with a grin as he put on the coffee using Tony’s expensive and needlessly complicated high-tech coffeemaker. 

Bucky simply grunted as he continued to pet the happy cat, Cheese pawing at Bucky’s steel-toed boots as he replied. “I don’t.” 

“He can probably smell the blood on ya,” Clint joked, grinning as he yanked a box of cereal down from the top of the fridge. “Man, that kitty would not be cuddlin’ with you if it saw how brutal you were with those hostiles in Germany.” 

Bucky chuckled as Cheese shot away from him, bolting around in circles with glee. “I think he’d be rather pleased.” 

“I wonder if his mommy’s awake,” Tony mumbled, stripped of the Iron Man suit in turn for a simple button-down. “FRIDAY? Is Ms. Frizzle back in the land of the living?”

“She is awake, after sleeping thirteen hours she decided to go for a walk around the compound. Miss Maximoff is accompanying her, do you wish for me to call them back?” 

Tony shook his head as he poured milk into his coffee. “No thanks, FRIDAY.” 

Bucky slumped back onto the couch, letting his eyes close once more. Combined with the head wounds and lack of sleep, he was drifting in and out of consciousness. He shuffled off his boots, letting his head rest back against the arm of the couch. He analyzed the room one last time, doing his rounds before he finally relaxed into the soft cushions. 

His thoughts drifted back to Wakanda. The serenity of herding goats in a remote outskirt of the city. But every so often, he couldn’t stop himself from seeing you. In place of the eager goats that heckled Bucky each morning, he saw you herding your students, as he had seen the day he’d met you. Your smile eager, ready to nurture them and care for them as you doted with that focused look on your face.

Bucky made no attempt to roll his thoughts back. He was at peace within either memory. It confused him, yet he was more focused on trying to quiet the restlessness of his mind so he could nap in peace than how confusing it was that a memory of you could soothe him in the first place. 

It made him smile. And when he let his eyes close, he let it swarm him, comforted in its warmth before letting himself slip off. 

——

“So, teaching kids must be a hoot and a holler.” 

You chuckled, your eyes scanning over the grassy knoll of the compound grounds. Wildflowers littered the grass, and you reached down to pluck them, hoping to put them in a vase or press them so that they’d last longer. Most of the bouquet consisted of your favorites: Daisies. They were stragglers from the late autumn, you wanted to pluck at least a few before first frost killed them completely. 

“It’s certainly never boring. This cohort is one of my favorites in a while. They’re so high-energy, incredibly inquisitive and sweet.” 

Wanda hummed, brushing her hair away from her face with a small smile. “I will tell you, I’ve always wanted some of my own. Back in Sokovia, we all took care of one another. You know the old saying, ‘it takes a village to raise a child’? I’m convinced that it’s a Sokovian anthem.” 

You let out a pleasant giggle at the quip. “It does certainly fill that hole a bit. It’s a dream of mine to have my own, too. My mom loves to call me and tell me how my eggs are shriveling up and I need to find a man to settle down with soon.” You rolled your eyes, leaning down to pluck another buttercup that you rested in your arms among the others. “But that’s the last thing I want right now.” 

Wanda hummed, smiling over at you. “What is it that you want?” You turned the question over in your mind before answering. 

“I want to help people. Whatever form that comes in, anyways.” 

The witch nodded dutifully. “That’s a very noble thought.” 

You breathed out a sigh. “I like to lie to myself and say that’s why I became a teacher.”

“Oh? What’s the real reason, then?”

“I think...” you trailed off, wary of your own choice of words before continuing. “I think that I just wanted to give kids a better understanding of the world than I was given as a kid.” You cradled the flowers over your chest with a hum. “I was made distrustful by my upbringing. I was made to fear, to obey. And yet, I have this innate love for people still. I want to share that with people, not the pieces of me that Hydra and my father scrambled into my brain.” 

“Again, you prove yourself noble.” Wanda took one of the flowers from the pile you’d gathered in your arms, inhaling its sweet scent with a smile. Her red ponytail swayed with her as she kept pace with you. “It’s a shame that the flowers won’t last much longer.” 

You nodded in agreement. “It really is a shame. It’s always the pretty things that don’t last.” When it fell silent between the two of you again, you frowned before speaking once again. “I’m aware of the way that they talk about me.” 

Wanda took a pregnant pause at the sudden declaration. Her steps stuttered, but she breathed out a sigh shortly after. “People like Mister Stark and Doctor Banner and Ms. Romanoff are complex. They devote their lives to saving people, but... they have a hard time seeing the needy as more than missions at times. They do not realize how extremely removed from people they seem to be.” 

“You can say that again,” you chortled. “It’s just... they treat me like i’m not even a person. FRIDAY told me what happened. Tony and Bruce hardly concern themselves with my emotions. It was an _experiment_ , which makes me feel so.... ugh.”

You lacked the proper words to articulate how annoyed you were with their treatment of you. One of the first things you taught your students was their own autonomy. How nobody could make them do something that they didn’t want to. But your own ledger had been violated, it seemed. 

But you drew a deep breath, letting your eyes flutter closed. “I shouldn’t have to prove that i’m a person to them.” 

“I agree with you.” The witch smiled at the rising sun, blue eyes happily set on the horizon. “Do you want me to talk to them for you?”

“No, that’s okay. You’ve been so kind to me ever since I got here, thank you so much.” 

“Alright, well- my offer still stands should you ever need it. I know how hard it is adjusting to them...” she frowned, casting her eyes back to the clouds. “It took them a while to not see me as a threat. It took even longer for them not to see me as a child. I just want the transition to be easier for you.” 

You smiled as you both had unconsciously begun to make your way back to the compound. “Well, we can only hope.” 

Upon your return, you shuffled into the kitchen area adjoining the common room in search of a vase. When your search came up empty, you settled for scrubbing out an empty glass pasta sauce jar, leaving a faint scent of tomato basil and dish soap behind when you filled it with water and plopped the wildflowers in. You smiled at your handiwork and carried the vase of yarrow, poppies, cornflowers and buttercups to the granite island, making it the lovely centerpiece to the otherwise grey and blue lounge. 

Your favorites, however, were the daisies. This was no secret, even to your students. And they were plentiful in your travels around the compound. They sat in your hands still, the ones you’d gathered, unable to part with them. You thought of pressing them into a book, but you were terribly afraid of ruining them. 

A small grunt from behind you made you whirl around at attention, only to ease up when you cast your eyes to the couch. There laid Bucky Barnes, sleeping like a cadaver on the soft grey corner-couch. His head rested over its arm, chocolate locks of hair pooling over the side. 

Even the way he slept was guarded. His arms firmly crossed over his chest, his legs twisted with one resting overtop the other. His mission suit was scuffed, his face scratched, his face contorted and focused, even in the time and place of a dream. 

You didn’t notice until you had kneeled next to him, your curiosity getting the best of you. You watched his face as he slept, even as you were oblivious to the fact that he had done the same thing to you just the day prior. Whatever he was dreaming about, it was making his brow furrow in an uneasy way. 

_A nightmare, probably_... you thought to yourself, chewing on the inside of your cheek.

Your eyes fell on the rigid contour of Bucky’s sharp nose, harshly interrupted by a small cut across its bridge. 

In your time here, you’d slowly begun to figure Bucky out. When he borderline interrogated you every day after work, small things came to light. 

He kept knives strapped on his body at all times. You’d only been able to count three so far, but you wouldn’t be surprised if there were more. 

He drank his coffee black. 

He liked hard caramels. When he had to pull something out of his jacket, he’d always manage to rustle out an array of wrappers. 

He never sat with his back toward a window.

He examined everything quickly as possible, as tactically as possible, and that included you. 

But now, you finally got a moment. A moment where he was relaxed and vulnerable, because the people around him were trusted enough. 

Did _that_ include you?

You smiled upon seeing his facial features finally relax. Good. Dreams should be a safe space. Sleep should be a sanctuary for the damaged. 

Unconsciously, you lifted one of the daisies out of your lap. As it reached for Bucky, you breathed in deep, reminded of all of the things daisies represent. 

Purity. Innocence. 

A gift as you intended to lay it upon his peaceful frame. It was something you loved, something you wanted to share. 

Key word is intended. 

Before you were within an inch of his face, his hand shot out, grabbing your wrist in a hostile grip. You gasped as his metal fingers tightened around your wrist.

His eyes only opened up upon hearing a pained mewl from your lips. They shot open, his head unmoving as he trained those piercing blue eyes on your frame. “What are you doing?”

Too stunned to speak, your lips parted, but no words came out. Bucky’s eyes quickly assessed for threat, seeing nothing except your shocked face and the arm that he held holding a flower. 

Your cheeks reddened in embarrassment. “I just- you sleep like a dead person, I just wanted to help you look like one.” You turned your embarrassment into a joke, thinly veiled by the crumbling cadence of your voice. 

Surprising you, Bucky let out a small chuckle. You noticed that when he smiled, little lines next to his eyes crinkled. “You startled me, Bo.” 

“I didn’t mean to, I promise. Can you, um... let go of my hand, though? You’re kinda hurting me...” He obeyed, still eyeing you warily. You massaged your wrist with a small huff. “Those are some sharp reflexes you got there.” 

Bucky slowly sat up, rubbing the tiredness from his eyes. “Sorry. Occupational hazard.” 

“Don't apologize. It was- it was stupid, anyway. I’m sorry.” you murmured, your cheeks tinged with red as you shuffled away. 

Bucky’s eyes flickered down to the daisies that you now clutched to your chest. He remembered the day he’d met you, and the reoccurring significance of your daisy earrings and the daisy-shaped buckles on your shoes, along with the daisy keychain that dangled off of your bag when you were running away from him. 

He quirked a brow. “You, uh... you like daisies?” 

You pursed your lips into a thin line as you eyed the plants in your lap, but Bucky couldn’t help but notice how you couldn’t help breaking out into a smile. “You know, in norse mythology, the daisy is the Goddess Frigga’s sacred flower. It is said to represent innocence and purity, new beginnings and motherhood.” 

“Congratulations, then.” 

You giggled at his dry jab. “I’ve loved daisies ever since I was little. There was this little creek behind my school where I used to catch frogs, it was chock full of daisies.”

Bucky once again laughed. “You used to catch frogs?” 

“Oh, we all did weird things as kids. I used to kiss them in hopes that I’d get a prince out of it.” 

“Well, glad to see that girls haven’t changed much since I was a kid.” 

It was your turn to snicker as you gingerly touched the petals with your finger. “I spent a lot of time at that creek. I didn’t really like it at home.” 

“...Was it-“

“It was before. You know.” You sighed, your eyes drifting over to the vase of wildflowers. “I spent a lot more time at home after we moved away. Momma never really learned how to live by herself.” 

Bucky felt that odd twang again. It was a stupid shift in his gut, and it kept his eyes glued to you as you pensively stared into the abyss. 

That’s when it clicked for him. 

The vulnerability of the situation. 

It was something you loved, something you held close to your chest from the last time you felt happy in your innocence, in your childhood. A memento of the fleeting memories of what could have stayed a happy childhood. 

You grasped toward it, held onto it with a vice grip. You held it to your chest as a testament to something you had once enjoyed. 

And you had wanted to share it with him. 

Sleep, for Bucky, was vulnerability. So was this memory for you. You wanted to protect him with it, keep him safe, keep him innocent.

As dense as Bucky was, all of this slid into place, making his eyes go wide as he eyed your crouching form. He had met your happy place with hostility. He had rejected your opening. 

He wouldn’t let it slip away from him this time. 

So he grumbled, reaching out his hand for you. Your eyes went wide when he pointed at the bundle of flowers. 

Your heart squeezed. You gave him a key, and he slid it into place. 

You smiled as you pressed the one of the fragile flowers into his hands. He fumbled with it, his eyes flickering down at it warily. It was again that he was afraid to touch something. He had kind of expected that it would just shrivel up and die right then in his vibranium grasp. 

The silence between you, for once, was comfortable. 

“It’s pretty,” he finally said. 

“Yeah...” you mumbled, smiling up at him. “Pretty.” 

He breathed deep, rolling the stem between his fingers when he met your eye. “When you disappeared yesterday, where did you go?”

“Asgard,” you said simply, making Bucky’s eyes go wide.

“Asgard?! Like- space? Like _Thor_ Asgard? You’re sure you weren’t on drugs?”

“It surprised me too.” You pointed to your eyes. “I’m only usually able to teleport places that I’ve seen before. That’s why my sight comes in so much handy. I’d never seen Asgard before, which is why I was so shocked when I zipped there.” 

Bucky tapped his chin in thought. “You must have zapped a lot of energy getting there and coming back. That’s why you-“ he paused before clearing his throat. “That’s why you fell asleep.” 

You nodded. “I was so exhausted. How long was I gone?” 

“About an hour. What were you doing?” 

You glanced up at the sky, a smile on your face. “Oh, talking to a handsome bridge guardian.” 

“...Is that a metaphor for something?” Your pleasant laughter at Bucky’s joke made him smile. 

“Ah, I kinda want you to meet him. It was kind of like a therapy session. He said that the king wanted to meet with me at some point, which made me nervous.” 

Bucky grumbled, flopping back onto the couch. “You know, this is somehow not the craziest thing that’s ever happened to me. I’ve met sorcerers, you know.” 

“Oh, Doctor Strange is cute too.” 

Bucky cringed. “You know, I’m in charge of you. Please tell me if you intend on shooting off to space. I couldn’t get your signal.” 

“I’m sorry. That must have worried you a lot.”

Bucky snorted, trying to make his tone sound clinical despite the fact that he was desperate to try and get you to stop apologizing for everything. “It was a pain in my ass, I guess. I was more mad at Tony and Bruce than anything.” 

“Yeah, me too.” 

You stared up at Bucky, breathing out a sigh. “I want to be clear about something for a minute.” 

Bucky quirked a brow as you stood, your posture suddenly rigid. Your shoulders broad, you looked imperial as you stared down at him. “And what’s that?”

You pointed at Bucky’s nose, your eyes crackling a dangerous blue and your voice deadly serious. “I may be an open case, or a mission to you. But I’m a person. I am a teacher and a daughter with thoughts and feelings and super scary powers, and I am a _human being._ Pass the message along.” 

Bucky’s eyes caught onto yours, entranced by the dangerous sapphire. He wasn’t sure if he was scared or impressed. But he doesn’t protest. Doesn’t linger. He amends. 

“Will do, Peep.” 


	10. Questions

“Good job, class! Now, _who_ can tell me what an interrogative is?” You grinned, letting the word you enunciated be their hint as several little hands shot up into the air. “Ella?”

“Question words!” 

“Excellent! Now, can you guys tell me some of these question words?” You cooed, picking up five different colors of whiteboard marker as you heard high pitched ‘who’s and ‘what’s and ‘where’s and ‘why’s and ‘when’s and ‘how’s.

You scrawled each one on the board in a different color before spinning around and playfully tapping your chin. “Now, _who_ can help me use these words in a sentence?” 

“Miss! But you just used one!” 

After feigning a playful gasp, you held a hand to your mouth. “Oh my! I’m giving away all the answers, aren’t I?”

The class giggled at your antics as you smiled, scrawling the question just uttered from your mouth on the board under ‘who.’ “Now, any other ones?” 

“ _What_ time is the bus?” Nile questioned with a tilted head.

You gasped, gleefully scrawling that one down. “Perfect example, Nile!”

“ _When_ were you born?” another boy called out, making you giggle as you wrote down that one too. 

“Noah, it’s rude to ask a lady her age! Oh but since that’s such a good answer, I’ll let it slide.” The room once again lit up with little giggles, and it centered you. You were reminded of what you did, and why you did it. It gave you a drive. 

More and more answers were shouted out until the board was entirely filled up with excited interrogative questions, all in different colors according to their respective words. 

“Who’s at the door?”

“Yes, Naomi! Another excellent example.” 

“No, miss! Somebody’s at the door!” 

Heeding the small girl’s call, you whirled toward the door, only to have your mood become dim as a church candle. There, at the door, stood Mr. Miller, grinning nervously and waving at you from the door. 

You let out a sharp sigh, pushing up your round glasses before passing a thick stack of papers to one of the students toward the front. 

“Colin, could you pass these out? I want you guys to work on these worksheets while I talk to Mr. Miller, alright?” 

A chorus of hums met your ears, making you smile as you whirled around to the door. You swallowed thickly before turning the knob and pulling it open, the grin on your face becoming more fake by the second. 

“Callan! What a pleasant surprise.” 

He chuckled, running his hand through his sandy brown curls of hair. “Sorry to interrupt. It just so happens that I lost my whiteboard eraser. Mind if I borrow yours?” 

Honest to God, you just wanted him to leave. Sure, that sounds rude, that’s just because he hadn’t made his first offense yet. 

But, you tutted to yourself, keeping your calm as you spun around to pull an extra out of your desk. You forced another grin as you passed it to him. “Keep it, I’d hate for you to be without one.” 

He smiled, lingering just a little too close as he pulled it out of your hand. You shivered when his fingers touched yours for a beat too long, no doubt on purpose. 

“You know- I haven’t seen you on the subway in a while... almost a month, I think? Three weeks.” 

_Has it been that long since I moved in with the Avengers?_ You thought, shifting your weight from foot to foot. _Play dumb._

You chuckled, more concerned with the fact that he’d been watching you. “Yeah, well... you know how it is.”

_Not that dumb!_

Callan raised a brow. “I was just wondering... it’s been so boring, not seeing you on my way home... I keep wondering when I’m gonna take you on that date.” 

You laughed nervously. “Oh, Callan. You’re so... persistent!” 

He clearly took that as a compliment as he leaned down, his greenish-blue eyes staring right through you. They were harsh, just a little too green, they reminded you of seasickness. 

“You know... it’s really dangerous for a little lady like you. All alone, nothin’ but that cat of yours to keep you company... I teach kids on how to manage a family. I think it goes without saying that I can be really good at it.” His eyes grazed you up and down as he spoke, a slight southern twang in his voice. 

You tried to ignore the churn in your stomach. “I... don’t doubt it.” 

“You’re so good at takin’ care of these kids, you want some of your own some day, don’t you?”

He was certainly bold to lay it on this thick in front of your students. Suddenly backpedaling, your eyes narrowed when you dawned on a realization. “How did you know that I have a cat?” 

He paused. Whatever stroke of confidence he had was gone as he stumbled back, forcing a nervous smile on his face. “Uh- thanks for the eraser, again. I’ll- we can catch up later. I’m still taking you on that date, hm?”

You huffed, crossing your arms. “Bye, Callan.” 

He skittered out of the room, and you shut the door behind him with a shiver. “What a creep.” 

When lunchtime came, you posted yourself up in Danny’s room to do the same thing you two always did: bitch. 

“That guy is _such_ a perv. He started asking me if I wanted to have kids! Right in the middle of my class! I don’t know what’s worse, the fact that he does it or the fact that he has no shame about it.” 

Danny hummed, smoothing out his button down. “He’s such a wack job. Do you want me to kick his ass again? I’ll kick his ass.” 

You chuckled, leaning into your friend. “No, I do not want you to kick his ass. I had to pull you off of him last time!”

“Yeah, you shouldn’t have. I woulda killed him.”

“That’s why I had to pull you off of him!” 

He let out a giddy laugh, flicking his plastic fork away. “I’d do it again.” He cast his eyes up to you, true and pure sincerity in them. “I care about you. Like a lot.” 

You chuckled, playfully punching his arm. “I care about you too, bozo.” Your brow furrowed worriedly as you nestled your face into your palm. “Did you tell him I had a cat?” 

“Sweetness, I don’t even talk to that loser if I don’t have to. How is Cheese doing, by the way? I haven’t seen him since you went on vacation and had me take care of him.” 

“He’s good! I have to go back to my apartment soon to get his food bowl and his toys, though. You know, he’s always so hostile toward new people. But he’s warmed up to my uh, my new roommates pretty quick.” 

“That’s good. That situation with your pipes is still going on?”

You bit the inside of your cheek. “It’s taking longer than expected to get it figured out.” 

Danny leaned over his steel desk, taking long sips from his travel mug of coffee. “I’ll say. Your mom called me yesterday.” 

You snorted, crossing your arms over your chest. “Did she, now?”

“Yeah. Said she came by your apartment and it was cleaned out. She was worried you’d been kidnapped.” 

“I have to go back today to get Cheese’s food bowl. I’m sure he’s tired of the paper bowls i’ve been using. Anyway, I’m alive and well, and just tell her to call me! Ugh, she likes to do this whole runaround thing.” 

“I’ll pass on the message.”

“Oh! Guess what I’m excited about!” 

Danny narrowed his eyes. “I thought you knew that I hate guessing games, hon.” 

You puffed out your cheeks. “You’re no fun. It’s storybook day soon!”

Danny flickered his eyes toward the calendar to the left of his desk. “Well, fuck a nut. It’s a week from now, yeah?” 

You nodded excitedly, squeezing your palms together. “It’s one of my favorite days of the year! All of the kindergarten classes dress up as a storybook character, there’s different games and activities for the whole day, it’s gonna be so fun!” 

“Why do I feel like most of kindergarten is spent screwing around? Jeez, my kids are taking a quiz that day.” 

You stuck out your tongue. “Spoil sport.” 

Danny shrugged, clearly unbothered. “Who are you gonna dress up as?” 

“Dunno. Any ideas?” 

Danny tilted his head pensively. “One of my favorite stories as a kid was Strega Nona.” 

“The one about the spaghetti witch?” 

Danny laughed heartily before nodding. “My Nonna loved reading me that story.” 

“Ah, an Italian folklore for ages.” 

He grinned up at you charmingly. “You’d look cute, a lil scarf around your head like a little old lady. A mischievous pasta witch.” 

You snickered, brushing a bit of lint away from his shoulder. “Hard pass.” 

——

“For a school, these people certainly didn’t do their homework.” 

Bucky grumbled as he filled a tumbler with whiskey, warily eyeing the files that rested in front of him. He preferred paper copies, so after FRIDAY had compiled an extensive background check on the name you’d flagged: Callan Miller. 

He sat at the granite island in the compound lounge, whiffing his drink before pouring the smoky liquid down his throat. He couldn’t get drunk, but the taste was a comfort.

Assault, battery, sexual harassment, this dude certainly had a rap sheet. Only it was under a different last name and different state, it seemed like he’d changed his name and moved to continue to pursue a teaching career. 

Bucky cringed. How noble. 

The record player in the corner spun the lazy vinyl in its place, letting Bucky sigh peacefully as he drummed his fingers to the beat of the tune. Another comfort to try and settle his uneasy stomach.

The Soldier scanned hazy blue eyes over each corner of every last page. From his teaching degree to his ex wives’ names to his credit card history, FRIDAY had gotten him everything short of his favorite color. 

High school, rehab, counseling, college, more counseling, grad school, more rehab, he had certainly racked up enough charges to get on a radar. 

Just not Hydra’s. 

It was unsophisticated. Sloppy, he just looked like a petty pervert with a peeping problem. There was no way he could be Hydra.

Unless they were using him, of course. It made sense. Reel him in under the guise of getting something he wanted out of it. 

That of course, being you. 

Bucky grit his teeth as he took another slow sip from his tumbler. It didn’t matter what he wanted. He was put in charge of you, and this man posed a threat, meaning he had to take care of it. 

At the most subtle of shuffles, Bucky perked up, his head whirling toward the doorway. Natasha grinned from the threshold before pulling up a seat beside Bucky. 

“What’s rockin’ around in that brain of yours?” 

Bucky let out a small sigh. “Three weeks this case has been active, and we aren’t any closer to figuring out who this guy is.” 

The redhead hummed, picking out the M&Ms from a glass jar of trail mix on the table. “Well, they sure as hell wouldn’t be Hydra if they knew how to hide. Even after we shut Pierce’s operation down, they went underground. We’re still finding active Hydra bases.”

“But why haven’t they made their move?” Bucky mumbled, eyes narrowed dangerously down at the file in front of him. 

“Maybe it’s cause you took away their control,” Natasha mumbled through a mouth of M&Ms. “You moved her out of her apartment. Changed her routine. That’s gotta be frustrating.” 

“I was hoping that would draw this fucker out... but no, they’re still quiet as a church mouse.” 

The widow tapped her chin in thought. “Well, that’s a good thing I guess. We have an advantage. We have the girl. If I had to guess, they’re too nervous to make a move.” 

“Yeah, you’re right... I guess I shouldn’t be complaining that she’s safe.” 

Natasha thought for a minute. “Maybe you should go back in.” 

“In?” 

“Into the school, I mean. Tail Peep. See who stands out. You were always better with your eyes fresh on a scene. Only so much you can do from up here.” 

Bucky wanted to argue with her, but he knew her to be right. There was limited control from a place where he couldn’t see you. He didn’t have a feel for your environment, as he hadn’t been there for weeks. He had maps, firsthand accounts, background checks, piles of files on people with depressing to mundane lives. But he had no substance or control. 

That was the missing piece. 

“I’ll ask her when she gets back,” Bucky grumbled, taking another swig of his whiskey. 

“Did she ever tell you where she went?” 

Bucky snickered. “Asgard.”

“Asgard? Like- _Asgard_ Asgard?” 

“The one and only.” 

Natasha blew out a breath. “Man. I way underestimated her powers.” 

Bucky rolled up the sleeves of his henley before resting his elbows on the granite countertop. “Well, I did too. We’re lucky she’s on our side.” 

Nat crossed her arms over her chest. “Is she, though?” 

Bucky took a pause before he glanced over at Natasha. “The hell do you mean?” 

“I’m just saying, she does a hell of a lotta arguing with you. After this is all said and done, you think Fury’s just gonna let her _go_?” 

Bucky groaned. “Not you too.”

“What do you mean, ‘not you too’?” 

“You’re treating her like Tony and Bruce do, Nat! Like she’s- like she’s a threat or a villain or an experiment or somethin’. Like she’s sooooo untrustworthy that she can’t even be given a simple task!”

The black widow glared at Bucky, slowly standing. “I didn’t think you were giving your trust out so easily.”

Bucky jumped up, a snarl on his lips. “ _We_ invaded _her_ life, Natasha. Not the other way around.” 

“She’s your mission, Buck! She’s your job! She is _work_!” 

“She’s not work! She’s a human being!” 

“I didn’t say she wasn’t a human being! I’m saying that there has to be- certain precautions!” Natasha huffed, crossing his arms. “Look, you are Steve’s best friend, Buck. We all trust you, even after what Hydra did to you. Which is why I wanna make sure that you’re not too close to this.” 

Bucky could only glare in response. “Listen. I compartmentalize just fine. I am in control.”

“Then look me in the eye and say that! Say that she’s just a mission. Tell me that you have this mission under control!”

Bucky stopped in his tracks. He knew what Natasha was trying to do. She was trying to get him to depersonalize. That’s what Nat did. Love is for children, she always preached. It was her job to sever feelings in turn for her occupation. Emotions cloud objectivity, makes gears click and whirl and spin out of place, and Bucky was a well-oiled machine. 

He grabbed the bottle of whiskey off of the table with a grunt. “I have this mission under control. I’m gonna go in again, like you said, shut it down, and have all of this be over with.” 

Natasha assessed Bucky’s face, but nodded. “Good. When she gets back here, touch base. Don’t lose your head.” 

Bucky took another swig from the bottle before stomping toward his room. “Never have.” 


	11. Big Bad Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don’t think I ever told y’all but my update schedule is I try to post my updates every other day or so <3 i’m giving a lil warning for this chapter cause at the end is a bit of implied masturbation/wankin it. Enjoy!

_“Do you blame yourself?”_

_You lifted your head. As you shifted in the leather mustardy-yellow seat of the office, you winced from the pull of your bandaged arms. The wounds had started to scab over, but the dried blood had mended to the bandages. You bit the inside of your cheek but failed to meet her eye._

_“...What?”_

_She jotted something down in her clipboard. “It’s not uncommon in this type of situation for a patient to feel a kind of... guilt.”_

_Your vision went hazy. Ten years old, sitting in a shrink’s office who only had a fraction of an idea of what you’d been through, as you promised your mother you would never speak of Hydra or your powers. It was a promise you didn’t understand at the time, but you came to learn that it was because she feared. She feared they’d come back to torment her again, mock her with the knowledge that she married too early to know the truth about a man who said he’d loved her._

_“What situation...?” you mumbled, tugging on your shirt._

_Your vision blurred again. Your breathing picked up when you started to see them in the corner of your vision. The bodies. They lay discarded and mangled at your feet, ripped apart with brutal force._

_You sobbed on the cold stone floor, shaking your head and rocking back and forth. You’d felt them moments earlier. You could feel them breathe as your power held them, you could feel their heartbeats, their pulses in your ears._

_You wanted to ask them their names._

_You wanted to tell them yours._

_The shrink doctor hummed, her shoulders back as she watched you curl up into yourself. “The accident.”_

You woke with a start to the sound of your phone ringing, gasping for air as if you’d been drowning. Your body shook with tremors from the nightmare. 

You groaned, rubbing the sleep from your eyes and glancing outside. It was dark, your afternoon nap had certainly gone on longer than you’d intended. 

Blinking your tired eyes open, you gingerly held the phone to your ear. “Hello?”

“Hi, honey!”

You breathed out a sigh of relief. It was just your mom. “Hey Ma.”

“You sound terrible. What the hell are you doing?” 

You snickered to yourself, pulling the sheets off of your sweaty body. “I just woke up, mom.”

You heard her sigh in relief on the other side of the line. “Have you been sleeping alright? I know that-“

“I’ve been sleeping fine, ma,” you murmured, throwing your feet over the side of the bed. “How are you doing? How’s Butternut?” 

You heard a delighted meow from the other line, making you smile. “Oh he’s alright! Still a troublemaker, though. Knocked over one of my good glasses today, so I had to head over to Target to get some new ones.” 

“Ah, I’m sorry to hear that.” 

“Oh, it’s just a glass. Say, I went by your apartment the other day to deliver some food, and it was empty! What’s all that about?” 

You bit your lip. You didn’t know if you were allowed to tell your immediate family about your current situation. Hell, you hadn’t told anyone. Bucky would probably freak, so you held it back. 

“My bathroom’s messed up, and the plumbers are taking forever to fix it. Cheese and I are staying with some friends.” 

“Mhm. That’s what that Danny boy said, now you know I’m worried about you. What kind of friends are these? Are they nice?” 

You groaned as you reluctantly rolled out of bed. You honestly didn’t know how to answer the question. “Some of em.” 

“Well, if you ever need a break, lemme know. You never come up and visit me anymore!”

“I know, ma. I’m really sorry. I’ve been super busy with the kids and- this new situation really messed me up.” 

“Ah- I know! You’re all grown now, taking care of your own little tots!” You laughed as your mother gave a comically fake cry. “Now, are any of these new friends you're staying with a partner?” 

You groaned, a blush creeping into your face. “Mom!”

“What? You can’t blame me for wanting some grandkids!”

 _‘Why does everyone keep asking me if I want kids?’_ you thought. “Mooooom!”

“Just a couple little rugrats! That too much to ask? Now, what about that Daniel boy? you two are _awfully_ close and he is _very_ handsome.” 

A snicker left your lips as you pulled on a pair of fluffy socks. “Danny is my friend, Ma. Has been for years.”

“Mhmmm... well, anyways, if you need a good herring pie and some TLC, come on over. I haven’t had a visitor in ages.” She paused before taking a deep breath. “We both know it’s been hard.” 

You nodded solemnly, although you knew she couldn’t see. “Yeah... yeah, it has.” 

“Do you still have-“ 

“Nightmares? Yeah.” 

You heard her tsk. “The worst two years of my life, were those years that my baby was gone and the police did jack shit to help me get her back.” 

A small smile graced your face. “I’m doing okay now, ma. I promise. What about you? Are you still talking to your therapist?”

“Oh, don’t turn this on me! See, that’s what you do! You like to deflect like that! I know that you’re probably up in there now- buried knee-deep in some shit and trying to help all your friends so they don’t get the chance to ask you what’s wrong.” She let out another sigh. “I don’t know how the lord could have blessed me with such a sweet girl. But you need to care for yourself before you care for other people. Understand me? I know you think you’re Supergirl with your flying and teleporting and whatnot, but you are still a human, dear.” 

Picking at a stray thread on your comforter, you nodded. “I know, ma...” 

“Do you?”

You smiled, tucking your knees to your chest. “Yes! I’m perfectly fine, I promise.” 

Her resolute grumbling made you giggle. “Alright. I’ve been talkin’ your ear off, so I’ll let you go. Visit me sometime! This handsome boy just moved in down the street, looks to be about your age, and looks to be twice as single.” 

Your pleasant laugh no doubt made your mother smile. “Mom!”

“Take care, sweetie.” 

“You too. I’ll visit you some time next week. I love you, Ma.” 

“I love you too, honey.” 

The resounding click of the other line hanging up made you breath out a sigh. You checked your phone for the time: half past nine.

Your rumbling stomach was motivation enough to move out of your room. But when you pulled the door open, you quirked a curious brow. Bucky stood there, arm raised as if he was about to knock. 

“Uh... hey.” 

He shuffled, clearing his throat awkwardly. “Uh- hey. Sorry, I was- I... I saw your heart rate spike. I wanted to check in.” His tone was even, indifferent. 

You smiled politely. “I’m fine. Just a bad dream.” 

He nodded. He wanted to offer comfort. Wanted to tell you that he understood. He knew how horrifying it was to be afraid of your own mind. 

Sleep should be a sanctuary. 

You glanced down at his feet, seeing Cheese affectionately purring and nuzzling against his ankles. You chuckled. “It looks like you have a little tail.” 

Bucky grumbled, massaging the back of his neck. “He keeps following me around.” 

You grinned, lifting the orange tabby and scratching his neck. “That’s good. It means he trusts you.” 

“He shouldn’t.” 

You rolled your eyes. “Gee, Bucky. Ever the optimist.” 

A snicker met his lips. “You napped for three hours. Are you hungry?”

“A little. I have to feed Cheese.” 

“C’mon, I gotta talk to you anyways.” He beckoned you out of your room, leading you to the kitchen where on the marble table sat boxes of leftover chinese food.

You hummed, glancing into the boxes and dumping some of the contents onto a paper plate. “So, what’s going on?”

Bucky cleared his throat. “I need to come back to your school.” 

“I was going to say the exact same thing.” 

“I know that there’s a question of- wait, what?” Bucky glanced up at your face, that was practically radiating joy with the huge grin on your face. 

“Oh gosh! This is perfect! You should come back for storybook day!”

Bucky raised his eyebrow. “The fuck is storybook day?” 

You were practically bouncing up and down as you pushed your plate into the microwave. “It’s a day where all the kindergarten classes dress up as a storybook character! Oh my gosh the kids would love it if you showed up!” 

“On second thought, I better not.” 

You pouted as you leaned over the table toward Bucky. “Bucky! The kids would be ecstatic if you came!”

He snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. “I told you. I’m not exactly marketable to kids.” 

“But they loved you last time you came! And... maybe you could even put on a cute costume?”

“Don’t even think about it.” 

You chuckled, crossing your legs and floating in front of Bucky. “Please. You have to get a job done there, anyway. So, it’s an easy gig!”

Bucky narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “What does this... ‘storybook day’ consist of?” 

You grinned. You set the bait, he bit the lure. “It’s pretty recreational. Everybody shows up dressed as a storybook character, we read stories to the kids, and we have games loosely inspired by different stories! It’s _so_ fun.” 

“I have a costume. I’m the fucking Winter Soldier.”

You let out a giddy laugh. “Whatever! Just... please? The kids would be so happy to see you! Especially Aischa. Just entertain them, and then do whatever boring shit you have to do.” 

Bucky bit his tongue. You could practically hear the gears clicking and whirling in his cyborg brain. You became nervous when he smirked, leaning over the table as he seemed to come to a decision. “Fine. On one condition.” 

You eyed him suspiciously. “What’s that?” 

“You said you guys dress up as storybook characters?”

“Yeah...”

He gave you a mischievous grin. “I want you to dress up as Little Bo Peep.” 

Your face immediately reddened at the thought. You clicked your tongue before turning your head so he couldn’t see your embarrassed expression. “Absolutely not.”

“Come on! It’d be cute!” 

“No!”

“With the little bonnet and the cane, you’d look like a doll.” 

You looked back at the Soldier, the blush blatant on your cheeks. “Why do you call me Little Bo Peep?” you questioned, trying to shift the subject.

Bucky slid a hand through his silky brown hair as he chuckled. “Don't change the subject.”

“I think I deserve to know!”

Bucky spun around, one of the chinese food boxes in hand as he rooted around the drawers for chopsticks. “I have my reasons. I’m sure I’ll tell you someday soon.” 

You levitated the chopsticks out of the drawer with ease, holding them above Bucky’s head. “Give me a hint, then.” 

Bucky breathed out a sigh, staring at the floating sticks. “I never used to deal with shit like this.” 

“Please?” You cooed, batting your eyelashes.

You could see him pause. Whatever reason you had the nickname, it was important to him. He turned around to look at you, and his grin suddenly softened upon your sight. 

You stilled yourself. You felt your stomach do a flip at the sight of the tender grin, utterly confusing you. In the dim light of the kitchen, you finally caught wind of how... charming he was. His henley clung tight to his muscles, his hair framing his high cheekbones and sharp jaw like nobody’s business. Those striking blue eyes and that stubble on his strong chin, coupled with those scratches that he didn’t bother to tend to from the mission a few days prior...

It was enough to make your heart pound. 

You shook the thought as he opened his mouth to reply.

“You know, it was originally Sam that called you Little Bo Peep... but it took me a minute to realize that Little Bo Peep specifically reminds me of a memory that I find myself happy in. Conversely, it reminds me of you in the way that you herd your kids like sheep.”

You snorted. “You’re leaving out so many details.”

Bucky hopped up to grab the chopsticks floating above his head with a grin. “You said a hint. Can’t let you into all of my secrets.” 

Filling up another paper bowl with cat food for Cheese, you chuckled as you set it down to watch him chomp down on the wet food. “I think... I kinda get you, Barnes.” 

Bucky quirked a brow as he stabbed at his lukewarm Lo Mein. “That so?” 

You chuckled, that playful sparkle returning to your eye. “Yeah. It is.” He gave an indifferent grunt in response, making you giggle. “So, why is it that you have to come to school?” 

“I need to scope it out,” he mumbled with a mouth full of noodles. “I need to get a better read on your environment. How it interacts with you. From up here, I don’t have all that much control.”

“Why do you do that?” 

The sudden question caught Bucky off-guard. He raised his eyebrows before leaning over the table, eyes following you as you looked out the floor to ceiling windows. “Do what?”

You let out a small giggle as you pointed at him. “You said it again. That... that notion of control. Why is it you care about control so much?” 

Bucky narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, every time you enter a room, you’re always quick to analyze everything. Every person, each exit, every threat, you map it out in your head. You don’t sit with your backs to windows, you count and memorize and put things into boxes. Why?” 

Bucky set down his chopsticks, eyeing you warily. “Control gives me an edge. If you play with the hand you’re dealt, that isn’t good enough. I take in everything at once to put me at an advantage. Control is necessary in order to survive. Don’t you control your powers?”

“Of course I don’t,” you replied, letting a bit of energy seep from your fingers with a smile. “I might talk to it. I might call on it. But I don’t control it. The thought that you might control anything to me is foolish.”

“Really, now?”

“When you shoot a gun, do you control it?”

“Of course I do.”

“Ah!” You tutted. “You might control where you aim and fire. But your brain has to talk to your body first. Your brain has to communicate in order to tell your nerves when to pull the trigger.”

“I control where the bullet goes.”

“But you don't control the bullet’s weight, or the direction of the wind. Just like I can’t control my powers if they don’t want to be controlled, much less a screaming child or a stubborn sheep.” 

“But you do control children. That’s your job.” 

“This obsession with control...” you sighed. “I don’t control a child. I may nurture them, guide them, but control has nothing to do with it.”

“Some parts have to be about discipline.”

“But most parts are about _validation_. Acknowledging why a child might be acting out, and helping them! You don’t go straight to punishment. It’s not a situation that calls for force, they’re autonomous.” 

Bucky clicked his tongue, turning his body toward the window to stare you up and down. “Let me ask you a question. How do you feel about all of this right now?” Bucky stalked closer, his slate blue eyes trained on you like the most precise of rifles. “Not knowing who you can trust, looking over your shoulder, your routines being uprooted with no idea of when somebody could be watching you, just waiting for the right moment to get you alone. How’s that make you feel?”

You visibly tensed. “It’s... not ideal.”

“Exactly. Now, look at the steps I’ve taken. You have a GPS, I’ve changed your routine, moved you to a secure location where you have people around you at all times. I took away this bastard’s control, in turn for my own. I have access to you. He doesn’t. I’ve thrown him off his rhythm, next step is that he’s going to get desperate, and in his desperation, he’ll make a mistake. I know this because I’ve spent years doing it, with hundreds of things out of my control. Now, control is what gives me a good playing hand. I analyze everything, plan down to the smallest detail in seconds flat, because you’re only given a select amount of time before your ass is at a disadvantage. I strip away what they can control, so I can even the playing field.”

“And do you control me, Barnes?” A small grin played on your face as your back pressed against the cool glass of the window. “You may control where I go and who I see, but you don’t control me. I saw that when I left for Asgard. That frustrates you, doesn’t it?” 

Bucky snarled, drawing in closer. You could see the patience being sucked from him, and you were living for it. “I’ve killed people for years, made regimes fall, and i’ve done it by gaining the upper hand. Missions come and go, Bo. You’re a mission. I might not be able to control you, but I can sure as hell try.” 

You snickered into your palm. “There it is!” You whispered, clicking your tongue. “You’re trying to scare me. You think I’m gonna heel like a puppy if you freak me out enough, and then you depersonalize so that I don’t feel like it’s my fault, because deep down, you care. Barnes, I am not afraid of you.” 

That struck a nerve. Immediately, you gasped when his hands slammed on both sides of your head, caging you in against him. You pressed your back against the glass as he drew in closer and closer, his gaze flickering between your eyes. “ _You should be_ ,” he growled low, staring at you like a hungry wolf at a lamb. 

You swallowed thickly, your eyes locked onto his in your wavering defiance. “I’ve seen scarier things. You think you’re the big bad wolf or something. You’re not so bad.” 

“Oh, Bo...” he murmured, chuckling humorlessly. “Don’t you dare lie to yourself. I don’t much care for what those bastards did to me, but what I do know is that my senses are always dialed up to eleven. Always. I can hear the mildest scurry of a mouse, I can hear footsteps from meters away, and right now, I can hear your pretty little heartbeat. I can hear it speeding up, your blood rushing through your veins, your pulse in your ears... all of it.” He leaned in closer, so close that you could feel his breath against your nose. You were way shorter than him, than any super soldier, so looking up at him, you might as well have been a doe to a coyote.

“Th-thats not fair...” you whispered, steeling your face. “You’re trying to scare me.” 

“Am I? You seem to know everything, Bo. I’m a murderer. A killer, a villain. There are nine words that somebody could say at any given moment that would do everything but bar me from ripping you to shreds. You should be afraid, because everyone else is.” 

You wouldn’t let him see you weak. You wouldn’t let him prove his point. You reached around to set a gentle hand on his metal arm, the one next to your face. You rubbed soothing circles into it, staring into those sad, cold eyes. 

“I know that the world hasn’t been kind to you. I know that you’ve been treated like a villain for so long that you started believing the people who told you that you are one. I know that life’s made you bitter...” you whispered, easing your tensed shoulders. “I’m wondering what could make you tender. You keep shying away, making yourself clinical and indifferent. But you care, Bucky. You can tell me that I’m your mission all you want. All I want is a _friend_.” 

Bucky paused. You could feel him visibly tense from above you, but he said nothing. You massaged his arm with your fingers, your head tilted. Any semblance of fear had washed its way out of you by now.

“I know what it feels like to be treated like a villain. You think I’m not aware of the way the Avengers talk about me? They can joke with me and act like they like me all they want, but I know they’re all just waiting for me to mess up, to freak out, to blow something up, and it hurts. It’s not fucking fair, because I shouldn’t have to prove that I’m a person to them. But you go out of your way not to do that, because you know how it feels. Bucky, please quit keeping me at an arm’s length. I know that I’m your mission right now, but... why do you keep pushing me away?” 

Had Bucky not been squeezing his jaw shut, it probably would have hit the floor. Why did you have to overcomplicate this? Why did you have to go and make him feel guilty? Staring into your wide, gentle, almost begging eyes made his heart squeeze. He hated that look. He hated the thought that he was able to do something that would hurt you.

But he knew his duty. 

Bucky scoffed, pushing himself off of you. “You’re more naïve than you look.” 

You felt a sharp sting in your gut at the harsh words. When he turned his back, you grabbed onto the back of his henley, biting your lip to try and hold back how much those words had hurt you. “No I’m not...” 

He winced at the crack in your voice and praised God that you couldn’t see him. “My job is to protect you. Nothing more and nothing less.” 

He yanked himself out of your grip, and as he walked away, Cheese followed him. You huffed, feeling betrayed. “I’m not gonna give up, you know!” 

Bucky sighed, running a hand through his hair as he sulked out of the room. “Yeah, I know.” 

———

His nose was burrowed deep in her linen sheets. His eyes fluttered closed, taking in the remnants of her scent that still lingered in them. He had to take in the small blessings, even if those fuckers had moved her out, he was closer to her through what had remained in the small apartment. 

Those bastards had taken everything. Cleaned out her apartment, where he stared through her window longingly every time she passed by it. Took away her route home, where he watched her and sometimes got close enough to smell the sweet scent of her hair. All he had was when he saw her inside of the constricting building that was the school, but it wasn’t enough.

They took his access to her.

But soon they wouldn’t get her at all. 

He moaned into the sheets, inhaling deep as he stroked himself. He imagined himself on top of you, burrowed deep inside of you and watching your blissful face, your lips pursed with pleas and moans of his name, writhing underneath him as you begged for him to spill his seed inside of you and fill you with his kids. 

He wanted you. He wanted to kiss your lips until they were bruised, smother you with him until all you knew was the family that you two would make together. 

A family... that’s what he was working towards. 

Those pretty powers of yours would do his bidding, take care of everything he needed, every person too messy to kill. He’d reward you handsomely each night after long days of taking care of any marks he’d needed out of the way. And then, when the day was done, you’d take over duties as his dutiful wife. 

He’d keep you all to himself, give you everything and never let you go. 

His perfect little wife... 

He grunted when he finished into his hand, shuddering as he burrowed his nose deep into the pillows that littered your bed. He imagined you draped over wedding sheets, that signature giggle on your lips when he would pepper your neck with kisses. 

He lifted his head, scanning your near barren apartment. He would make up for what he lost soon. 

You were his everything.

He refused to let you go.

He grinned, his eyes falling upon the polaroid pictures of you and your friends that littered the walls that no doubt the oafish chauffeur was too nervous to take. He traced your face with his fingers before holding a cigarette up to his lips and lighting it.

You would be his weapon, his wife, his entire world. 

He knew that he was growing impatient. He was tired of using that low-level skeevy pervert.

But good things come to those who wait.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh bizzity boy things are gonna get juicy


End file.
